Sex, Lies, and Crime Scene Tape
by TStabler
Summary: The lives of cops are grossly different from those of the citizens they're sworn to protect. They have secrets, and they have ways of keeping them. What happens when someone finds out? A very deadly game of cat and mouse. E/O, with others. Intense M soon
1. Got A Secret

**A/N: ****A new one. Possibly. Starts sort of angsty. Takes place a few days after Olivia's return from Oregon. **

**DISCLAIMER: Dick Wolf own SVU and the characters; TStabler© owns the story you're about to read.**

He looked around, shaking his head at the scene surrounding him. He ran a hand down his face, clearing his throat. "I don't get it."

Olivia, beside him, snapped on a latex glove. "Neither do I." She sniffled a bit and cleared her throat, too. "We have a job to do, El. We can't make this personal, so just..."

"You just got back. You shouldn't be working this case," he interrupted.

She turned to him, a fierce look in her eyes. "Neither should you." She lowered her voice and narrowed her eyes. "You, of all people, shouldn't be working this case."

"None of us should," a voice from in front of them snapped. "But it's our district, clearly it's a special victims case. We have no choice, so just stop staring at each other like you wanna eat each other and...investigate."

Elliot looked at Fin, narrowing his eyes. "Ya know, I'm getting really sick of your attitude."

"I'm gettin' really sick of you, period, Stabler," Fin yelled back.

"Guys!" Olivia shouted, breaking up their growls and stepping between them. "We have one of our own lying on the floor in a pool of her own blood, and you two are standing over her trying to see who can look more threatening. Ya know what? I'm sick of both of you, so if you don't mind getting out of my way, I have work to do."

Elliot, stunned, stepped aside as she pushed between him and Fin and into the other room. He looked at the other man, scoffed, and followed after Olivia, suddenly eager to get back on her good side, knowing what it would cost him if he didn't.

Fin, though, shook his head and turned, bowing his head sadly at the stiff, cold body of Dani Beck. He exhaled harshly and walked over to the medical examiner, hoping the case would close fast.

Elliot, leaving Fin alone, turned the corner and saw Olivia, busy rummaging through Dani's things. "Hey," he called to her as he entered the bedroom. "What was that?"

She ignored him, opening and closing drawers, trying to do her job. She slammed one shut so hard the dresser shook, and her gaze shifted to its shining surface. She stretched out a hand and lifted up a picture of Dani, surrounded by three friends, laughing. She stared for a moment before shaking her head, and she put it back down. "She was pretty, huh?" she asked, a sad, hopeless look in her eyes.

His eyebrows knitted together. He licked his lips. "Are you really doing this now? Right now?"

"I'm not doing anything," she said, shaking her head again. "Just going over the reasons why anyone would want to rape and kill a cop. Over the years, we must have heard...shit, thousands. Makes me wonder what would happen to me if..."

"I would never let anything happen to you," he said, his voice low. He walked over to her and, as he helped her rifle through the desk for some sort of clue, he said, "You know that I would never..."

"I know," she interrupted. "I know all about her, too, El."

"Yeah?" he asked, stiffening. "Do you?"

She nodded and pawed through file folders. "Yeah, I do."

He clicked his tongue, a sign he was trying to control his temper. "So then you know that it was one kiss, and I was drunk, and you weren't there so I..."

"If I didn't come back, what would you have done?" she asked, looking up at him and tilting her head.

"What?" he asked, irritated. "Liv, come on, I was confused, and hurt, she was just...there. God, she caught me at a vulnerable moment, and it was never gonna be more than just that one kiss, no matter how much she may have wanted it to be. I thought about you the whole time, which made me feel guilty, for so many fucking reasons."

She looked at him more intensely, now holding a torn letter in one hand. "Just answer me," she said as she waved it, signaling him to look for the other half. "If I stayed away..."

"That's another thing," he said, flipping through papers in a drawer for the other half of that letter. "You never told me why you left. Why you really left. I know it was a job, and it was only for a few weeks, but I just..."

"I left because I loved you, El," she said, simply and clearly. "I realized that I couldn't be around you and not be...with you. It hurt too much. So I took off the first chance I got. I thought not being anywhere near you would..."

"So?" he asked. cutting her off, shutting a book with a thud as he smiled and held up the other half of the torn page. "Did it?" He handed it to her with a victorious look on his face. "Did it make everything easier?"

She smiled at him. "Made it all worse. It's part of the reason we are where we are, right now. Why we're..." she trailed off, just raising an eyebrow at him. "It hurt to be with you, but even more to be away from you, El."

He moved closer to her, and he whispered, "You'll never be away from me again. I promise you that." He blinked once. "And to answer your question, even if you didn't come back...which I'm thankful you did, by the way, I wouldn't have done anything more with Dani. She was a distraction. You used leaving and I...I used her. And like you, all I got out of it was how much I really wanted you."

Her breath hitched as he moved closer. She gasped a bit. "What about..."

"Benson," Fin's voice beckoned, breaking into the moment, "You and your partner should see this."

Olivia raised an eyebrow, took the two pieces of the torn letter in one hand, and walked toward Fin, with Elliot right beside her. "And what the hell happened with you and Fin while I was gone?"

Elliot growled again, the mention of that name causing anger to build. "I'll tell you later."

She raised both eyebrows, surprised at his answer, and shook her head, heading out into the hallway. "What, Fin?"

Fin turned and held up a plastic evidence bag. "This was in her hand."

Elliot reached for it, taking it so that he and Olivia could get a good look at it. "This isn't hers," he said.

"You would know," Olivia said, snippy. She looked up at him and shrugged. "Sorry."

He smirked at her, knowing that she never could control her jealousy when it came to him. He couldn't control his, either, so he let it slide. "Silver shield, Internal Affairs. I'll run the number as soon as we..."

"Don't bother," Olivia said, closing her eyes. "It's Tucker's."

Elliot and Fin looked at her, both curious, both slightly angry. "And you know that off the top of your head because..."

She interrupted him immediately, a scoff escaping before her first word. "Because he's gotten us into so much shit, mostly because of you, that I thought it was necessary to remember it, in case I needed to file a report," she said. Then she smirked at Elliot. "I know your badge number, too."

His eyes darkened. "Yeah, why do you think I jumped to conclusions?"

She slapped him in the arm and held up the bag. "We gotta get this to O'Halloran in the lab. Find out whose prints are on it. This letter, too. Oh, and one of you should talk to Tucker."

Fin folded his arms. "Why does it need to be one of us?"

"He's scared to death of Elliot and he thinks you'd shoot him if he looked at you the wrong way," Olivia said. "You'll get more out of him. Besides, I think under the circumstances, I should be the one that goes with Warner." She sighed and looked down. "I only knew her for a few days, you both...have more of a connection to her than I do. Did."

Elliot hummed and said, "Fine. I'll talk to Tucker. Fin, get these things back to the..."

"I'm going to the lab, anyway," Olivia said, snapping her head up. "I'll take it all to O'Halloran."

Elliot narrowed his eyes. "Okay," he said. "Then I'll go with you, and Fin can talk to..."

"Jesus," Fin said, ripping the badge and letter away from Olivia. "I'll go with Melinda, the two of you go see Tucker. Go all good-cop-bad-cop on his ass."

Before anyone could protest, Fin was following Melinda and her crew out of the front doors of the apartment.

"Is there a reason you didn't wanna be the one to talk to Tucker?" Elliot asked, raising an eyebrow.

She looked at him, bit her lip, and simply said, "I'll tell you later." She walked away, heading out, closing her eyes and taking a deep breath. She knew he was following her, and she prayed he would keep his mind off of her and on the case.

At least, until they got home.

**A/N: They? What is going on with them? What's up with Fin? And what, if anything, does Tucker have to do with Dani, and why is Liv afraid of talking to him? Answers...if you want them. Review here, or TracieOneSeven on Twitter**


	2. Can You Keep It?

**A/N: Hmmm, the mystery unravels. **

**DISCLAIMER: SVU and characters belong to Dick Wolf. TStabler© owns this story.**

The door to Ed Tucker's office opened and Olivia held her breath as she walked in.

Elliot noticed the confused and slightly pissed off look on Tucker's face as his eyes followed Olivia to a leather chair near his desk.

"You're back," Tucker said, his eyes narrow. "When the hell did you get back?"

"Tuesday," Olivia said. "When the hell did you give your badge to Dani Beck?" she questioned, her eyes just as narrow as the fear in her eyes twinkled slightly. "Or did she grab it off of you when she was fighting for her life?"

Tucker snarled and took three steps over to her. "Where the hell do you get off coming back unannounced and barging in here…"

"Hold on!" Elliot yelled, stopping the back-and-forth before one of them burst a vein. "Can one of you please tell me…?"

"Oh, you didn't tell him?" Tucker snapped at Olivia. "I thought you told your precious partner everything!"

Olivia let a small smirk play at her lips. "I was undercover," she said. "No one knew. No one except Cragen. But even he doesn't know why." She folded her arms. "Elliot would have killed you if he knew. Can you just answer the question about your badge?"

Tucker scoffed, strutting over to his desk. He sat, giving Olivia a threatening look. "You were supposed to tall me when you…"

"Answer the question," Elliot interrupted. "We're obviously here on a case."

Tucker turned his head toward Elliot. "She's back, so now your heads in the game? God, a few more days without her and you would have quit. Shit." He sighed, shaking his head. "What case? And what did you mean, Beck was fighting for her life?"

"She was found in her apartment," Olivia said, her eyes twitching as she forced herself to look at Tucker. "Dead. Your badge was clutched in her hand."

Tucker paled. "Dead? How? Who…who found her?"

"Yeah. Dead," Elliot said, finally sitting next to Olivia. "She was raped, then stabbed a few hundred times, it wasn't pleasant. And her neighbors heard screaming, called the cops, by the time they got there…well…"

"I get it," Tucker said, swallowing hard. He then dropped his hand to his hip, pulling his shiny, silver badge off of his belt. "My badge is right here. Hasn't been out of my sight."

Olivia furrowed her brow as she picked it up. "Same number as the one Beck had in her hand."

"So you were half right," Elliot said to her. "Tucker's number, just not his badge."

"Are you saying someone's trying to set me up?" Tucker asked, showing fear for the first time.

Elliot shrugged. "Could be," he said.

"Doesn't feel so good, does it?" Olivia asked, a hint of bitterness in her voice.

Tucker leaned back in his chair and bit his lip. "You're back now, so just drop it." He forced his eyes to meet Olivia's. "Did she have any enemies? Anyone who'd want to hurt her?"

"She was a cop," Olivia scoffed. "What do you think?"

"She was nice," Elliot said quietly. "A bit green, bad with victims, worse with authority, but I don't think she was the type of person who had many enemies."

Tucker chuckled. "She was no Olivia Benson, then?"

Elliot smiled, a small smirk. "Definitely not." He let his glance shift to Olivia and he sighed, taking in the tousled look of her hair, the slightly darker shade of her skin, and the way her chest rose and fell with every breath. He looked back at Tucker and all traces of joy melted off of his face. "She was a good cop, though. We owe it to her to find this son of a bitch."

"Of course," Tucker said, nodding. "Anything you need, you, uh, you just call and we'll get it. I may not like either of you…at all…but I don't take kindly to someone killing a fellow officer, so you'll have my full cooperation."

"Good," Olivia said, nodding once. "We'll need it. You're still a suspect. It was your badge number, so we have to take into account that…"

"That I could have more than one badge," Tucker said, his eyes sliding shut. "I know." He opened his eyes again and looked at Olivia. "I'm still pissed off at you, but you're one hell of a detective. We need you on this, so…welcome back. And we had a deal, Benson. You know what that means."

Olivia flinched. "Yeah," she said. She got out of her seat, heading for the door, and looked over her shoulder. It was a look Elliot found sexy and Tucker found threatening. "Don't even think about leaving town."

Tucker chuckled. "Where am I gonna go?"

Olivia sneered at him, then opened the door, walking out of the office. She heard his footsteps behind her and shook her head before she could hear him speak. "Don't ask."

"How can I not ask, Liv?" Elliot hissed. "What the hell is going on with you and Tucker? You're not…I mean you and Tucker…"

Olivia stopped in her tracks, turning sharply. "No way in hell," she barked. "Absolutely…how could you even think…Tucker? I'd rather sleep with Langan!"

"He was upset that he didn't know you were back!" Elliot yelled back. "What am I supposed to think?"

"He was upset that I came back at all!" she roared. "He's the whole reason I was gone to begin with, Elliot! He wanted me to stay out there! Transfer!"

Elliot's eyes narrowed. "What?"

She rolled her eyes and started walking again, almost punching the stairwell doors open. "He found out that Dana wanted me to go. He called the night before I left…he told me…he told me that if I didn't go he would blame the case falling apart on you. Write you up for the whole thing. El, that girl…that girl killed herself…it would have cost you…everything."

"He was…he blackmailed you into taking the job?" he asked, pulling on her arm and turning her around on the landing. "Why didn't you…"

"He also told me that if I called you at all, one e-mail…anything…" she closed her eyes, knowing how it all sounded and not ready to give him her reasons. "He said he'd have Cragen's ass in a sling for keeping us together even though we were involved."

He screwed his face up and tilted his head. His hand absently ran down her arm. "But we weren't…"

"Exactly," she said, both eyebrows rising. "If that got around, even though it wasn't true we would all be out of a job, Kathy would have left you and…"

"She did that anyway," he said, an attempt at humor. "Why would Tucker…" and then he stopped. It hit him. "He knew I was falling apart. He knew I'd lose everything without you…he wanted me to quit?" He narrowed his eyes, his grip on her wrist tightening. "What deal?"

She swallowed. She forced herself to look into his eyes. "I was supposed to warn him. Tell him I was coming back a week in advance. He wanted to get you to transfer before I…"

"Why?" he asked, leaning closer to her. "Why doesn't he want me with you?"

She shrugged. "He never told me. I just…I knew I would rather live with the consequences of not telling him then come back to find you gone."

"What consequences?" he asked, nudging her nose with his, finding the urge to kiss her almost impossible to resist. "What deal, Liv?"

She closed her eyes and twisted her wrist, forcing her hand into his. She squeezed. "Does he know Kathy left you?"

He shook his head, his nose rubbing against hers. "Why?"

She opened her eyes. "That was his threat," she said, offering a small grin. "If I came back without telling him, he'd tell Kathy we were…"

"She already thinks that," he laughed. "She has for years."

Olivia grinned and shook her head, pulling him by the hand down the rest of the steps. "She was never right."

"Well," he said, pulling on her hand roughly until she flew into his chest. "She is now, right?" His lips crashed into hers, his hands flew from her arms to the back of her head, his body pressed against hers until there was no way at all either could deny how much he wanted her.

They pulled apart, breathless. "What was…what was that for?" she asked, her eyes wide as she stared at him.

He grinned at her, winked, and said, "I'll tell ya later."

She laughed and followed him out, heading back to their squad room and back to their case.

* * *

><p>The tension as they walked into the bullpen was thick, the silence was almost enough to make Olivia want to scream just to end it, and the looks passing between everyone were unpleasant and unfriendly. Especially between Fin and Elliot.<p>

Olivia walked, contributing to the awkward silence, to her desk. She sat and sighed, finally speaking. "So what did Warner have to say?" She directed her expressionless face toward Fin.

The tough-looking detective held out a folder. "Read it yourself."

"Don't take your anger at me out on her!" Elliot snapped. "She asked you a…"

"Don't be so quick to defend her," Fin yelled back. "She's a grown-ass woman, a tough one at that, she can take care of herself! Hell, she survived without you for…"

Elliot took an intimidating step toward him, but Cragen stepped between them. "We have work to do! This case should come before everything else right now. Damn it, not only was this a cop but one we all knew. She was part of this unit! Show a little remorse and professionalism and get to work!"

Elliot growled, baring his teeth like a rabid wolf, but he retreated, taking backwards steps toward his desk. He took a deep breath as he sat and looked up at Olivia. "What's it say?"

She handed him the file. "Nothing we didn't know," she said, leaning back. "No trace evidence, other than a few black fibers on her neck. Probably from a glove."

Elliot ran a hand over his face, feeling the stubble of a beard threatening to grow if he didn't shave soon. "This is…I mean it's one thing to be working a case of a cop, but…"

"You shouldn't be workin' this, man," Fin interrupted, talking from his side of the space. "You were too close to her. It would be like workin' it if Benson…"

"Don't," Elliot demanded. The folder in his hand was slowly folding under the pressure of his clenched fist. "Don't you even compare this to…"

"El," Olivia said, reaching for his hand, the desire to hold it being overcome by the need to pry the coroner's preliminary report out of it. "Give."

He looked at her, let go of the folder, and tried to blink away the tears in his eyes. "God," he whispered. "Just thinking about…"

"I know," she said softly. "Let it go."

Squeezing the bridge of his nose, he nodded. He inhaled sharply and swallowed hard. "That letter…"

"Oh!" Olivia gasped. "Yeah! What was that about?"

Fin looked at her, something shifting in his eyes. "It was a pre-nup," he said. "Or plans for one, at least. It was written to her, not from her, and it was pretty demanding." He folded his arms. "Dani wasn't too happy, I guess. And she didn't want anyone to find it." He looked pointedly at Olivia. "Guess she had a lot of secrets, huh?"

"We all have secrets, Fin," Olivia said, looking back at the folder in her hands. "Everyone has secrets. Everybody lies."

"Yeah, well, everybody has to be aware of what secrets they're keepin' and who they're lyin' to," Fin said, a knowing tone in his voice.

Olivia narrowed her eyes. She'd only been back for a few days. There was no way Fin could possibly know anything that happened in Oregon during her undercover case, or anything that was happening in her life now. "Yeah," she said, trying to hide any trace of insecurity as she looked back at him. "They do, don't they?"

Fin flinched. He looked from her to Elliot, and back to her. "Yeah."

Munch, quiet up until now, dropped the phone from his ear and cupped the mouthpiece. "Can you all have this little war of ethics when we're not trying to find Dani's killer?"

Everyone turned to look at Munch. "Always the voice of reason," Elliot laughed.

"Well, someone has to be," Munch said. "If we left it up to you, everyone would be walking around with missing teeth and broken arms." He looked at Olivia. "You're back now, you can keep him on a leash or something, right?"

"Or something," Olivia joked, looking at Elliot with a smile.

He smiled back, momentarily regretting going back on their agreement and kissing her in the stairwell. If no one was around to see it, he figured, then it wasn't really in public, so he let it happen. He would find out, soon, that all secrets had a way of being exposed, and all lies were eventually discovered.

His head turned toward Fin and his smirk grew evil. The best way to hide the truth, he realized, was to convince people it wasn't true at all and blame the lies on someone else. Turnabout, he thought, was fair play.

**A/N: What is going on between Fin and Elliot? What does Elliot do about Tucker? Will Tucker talk to Kathy, or will Olivia have to face another consequence? And what is going on between Olivia and Elliot now that she's back? Truth revealed, next. **


	3. Swear This One You'll Save

**A/N: Some sex, some lies, and yes…some crime scene tape.**

**DISCLAIMER: SVU and characters belong to Dick Wolf. TStabler© owns this story.**

As Olivia walked with Elliot through the park, she looked down at their linked hands, and she felt her heart give a sharp thud, as if she couldn't believe he was holding her hand. She sighed, and it must have been louder than she thought because he turned to look at her.

"You okay?" he asked, raising an eyebrow.

She nodded and gave him a soft smile. She watched as he smiled back, then felt him tug on her hand, pulling her along. It was close to eleven when they left the station, and she assumed that now it was closer to midnight, and they were taking a stroll through Central Park.

"Here," he said, stopping. "Oh, uh…yeah." He shook himself out of his suit jacket and flattened out on the grassy ground beneath them. He helped her down, easing her onto her back, and keeping his hand locked in hers, he said, "It's a beautiful night."

"And you just decided to bring me here for no reason at all other than it's a beautiful night?" she asked, her thumb absently running along the side of his palm.

He chuckled and said, "I wanted to spend some time with you. I can't go back to that empty apartment, Liv. Not yet."

"It wouldn't be that empty," she said, a hint of suggestion in her voice.

"You know what I mean," he whispered, his body twisting slightly and his left hand running over her arm. "I miss the kids. I miss…"

"Your life." She nodded. "I know." She waited for a moment, listening to him breathe. "Does this have anything to do with…"

"Don't." He shook his head and kissed her cheek. "Don't even say her name. This has nothing to do with her. This isn't about Kathy or Dani, I just…it was a shitty day. I want to make the most of the night, try to end this all on a good note."

She felt his hand skimming gently up and down her arm and over her shoulder. She moaned softly, involuntarily, and whispered, "Is it working?"

"Oh, yeah," he said with a grin. He turned his head up to look at the stars and said, "So Tucker was really gonna blackmail you?"

"Pretty much," she said with a sigh. "I guess…I guess he knew I would do anything to…keep you safe."

His head turned back to her, he looked into her eyes, staying quiet for as long as he could. "You would, wouldn't you?"

She nodded, leaning closer to him. "You gonna tell me what's up with you and Fin? When I left, you were like brothers."

"When you left, I had a wife and kids, too," he said with a dry tone. "See what happens when you leave?"

She rolled her eyes. "I'm serious."

"So am I," he countered. He took a breath and said, "When you were gone, I lost it. Kathy kicked me out because we just...we weren't workingh anymore, the kids started blaming us for everything. Me mostly. Ya know I don't handle my emotions well, so I took most of my anger out on the assholes at work. And Fin…Fin kept talking about you. How much he missed you and how different it was. He knew it was getting to me, he knew every time he said your name it was like he was stabbing me in the fucking heart. He had the balls to say that he missed you more than I did."

She raised an eyebrow. "Oh, yeah. He missed me so much that he's done nothing but yell at me since I got back."

"I think he's pissed because we fell right back into things," he said to her. "He wanted…I guess…Liv, he wants you."

"He's finally sick of Munch?" she questioned, joking. "You went through partners like I go through shoes, El. He had to know that when I came back I would…"

He cupped her cheeks and interrupted her. "No, I mean he wants you. Like I want you."

It took her a moment. Her eyes widened and she said a very short, "Shit."

"Yeah," he agreed. "And he…he thinks we're sleeping together." He rolled his eyes and chuckled. "Don't look at me like that. He shouldn't think it, even if it's true." He scooted closer and began running one hand through her hair, sighing contentedly and looking up at the stars. "When you came back…God, Liv, I thought it was God's way of telling me he was listening, because I was praying every night that you would."

She snuggled up to him, getting even closer. "I thought you'd hate me," she said. "I was so afraid to see you, to talk to you, to…"

"I could never hate you," he said, dropping a tender kiss to her forehead. "I think that night at the bar proved that." He smirked at her.

"I thought it was just because you were drunk," she said with a scoff. "But when…"

"When the bartender told you I only had one beer, you knew," he interjected. "I was sober when I hit on you, and that night…well, you were with me. Did I have a single drop to drink before we…"

"No," she said, breaking in. "No you…you were…that was all you."

He laughed and rolled onto his side, facing her completely. He ran both hands through her hair and searched her eyes for any hint of fear or regret. Finding none, he kissed her. He laughed and said, "This is crazy, you know that, right?"

She let one hand trace the curve of his ass as she looped a leg around him. "What? Us being together or us lying on the ground in Central park in the middle of the night?"

He laughed and pulled her a bit, settling her on top of him. "Both," he said, just as he lifted his head to kiss her. "This is all just…fucking crazy."

She peered down at him, her hands moved to his tie as his fingers worked open the clasp on her pants. "Yeah," she said with a nod. "It is." She narrowed her eyes and let her lips curl into a grin. "I like crazy."

He kissed her, softly at first, but as their hands peeled at their clothes, their lips worked harder and faster. Moans and grunts grew louder as their kiss became heated and frenzied, and the pile of laundry beside them grew with it.

"Liv," he mumbled into her mouth. "Liv, baby, stop."

Naked from the waist down, with an unbuttoned and opened shirt, she panted as she raised an eyebrow. "You've never said that before, and you pick now, when we're like this in the middle of the fucking park to…"

"No," he chuckled. "I have every intention of making love to you right now, I just…I don't want you to think…I know what you think this is. And you're wrong."

She blinked.

"I'm not just biding my time with you until Kathy…" he stopped. He ran his arms up her body, back down. Over her back, and he cupped her ass. "I swear, it's over. Papers are signed and in her mailbox. This…this is…this is it."

She took a breath, unaware that she hadn't been breathing. "Okay."

He nodded. "Okay." He gave her ass a squeeze and lifted her up a bit, scooting down to get himself under her, in line with her slick entrance. He watched her face as she slid over him, and he saw her eyes close as he pushed his way in deeper. Her head dropped back and he moaned at the sight, bringing his hands from her ass to her hips, caressing them softly as she settled on him. "Jesus," he grunted.

She laughed, picking her head up and looking down at him. She rocked her hips once, making him grunt. "You feel so good, El," she purred, letting her hair fall over is chest. "So good," she added with another rock of her hips.

"Shit, Liv," he hissed, watching and feeling her rise up and drop down slowly. "I'm so sorry we skipped the foreplay, but I…"

"Heat of the moment," she said, cutting him off. "Does it feel like I needed foreplay tonight?"

He shook his head and looped a large hand around her neck, pulling her down for a scorching kiss as he jerked his hips up, slamming himself into her. "It doesn't take long to get you worked up, baby."

"Not for you," she moaned, nipping at his lips. Her teeth caught his bottom one and she pulled, sucking on it gently.

He moaned, almost a whine, and moved faster, lifting her and slamming her down as he thrust. "Just me, right?" he asked, his eyes narrow and serious, his tone domineering.

"God, El," she cried. "Yes, baby. Just you. No one else has ever…oh, fuck, Elliot."

"No one else has ever what?" he asked, getting a good grip on her and flipping her over. He pushed into her and ricked, feeling himself bottom out as their bones met. "Tell me."

"No one else has ever gotten me so riled up so fast," she gasped when he bent his head and took a nipple into her mouth. "You do…strange things to me, Elliot."

He chuckled as he ground his teeth over her nipple just slightly. He suckled on it, keeping his eyes turned up toward hers, slipping out of her slowly before pounding back in. He let her nipple go with a soft popping noise and said, "When I'm around you, all I wanna do is kiss you." He kissed her lips tenderly. "Hold you." He ran both hands down her body, tracing her curves. "Love you." He rested a hand over her heart. "And fuck the shit out of you." He winked at her and thrust in deep, making her back arch.

"Love me?" she asked, gasping for air and clawing at his back.

He leaned close to her, he kissed her, and he felt her tightening around him. He knew he wouldn't last long, as he tried without much luck to pull out and push in through the vice that her body had become. "Yes, Liv. I love you."

Her back arched as she cried his name. Her eyes widened, yet she looked at him. Her body trembled as it tightened and then shook violently as her nails dug deeply into his back.

"Oh, my God, Liv," he hissed, unable to control himself any longer and spilling into her, hot and fast, the whole time never letting his eyes leave hers.

They held onto each other as they calmed, their labored breathing slowing and their pulses reaching normal speeds. She unclenched her hands and uncurled her toes, he raised his body slightly to keep her from feeling trapped, and they shared a smile.

He was the first to move, getting up and off of her, and he slipped his pants on before standing. He smiled down at her as she buttoned up her shirt and he handed her her pants, smirking as she slipped into them. There was something so sexy about her getting dressed, just as there was when she undressed.

He held out a hand when she was done, and she took it. He pulled her to her feet and appreciatively looked on as she bent over to pick up his jacket, now grass-stained and wrinkled.

She handed it to him and tried to brush it off as he pulled it on, but he stopped her, grabbing both of her hands. "Don't." He kissed her and said, "It's just a jacket."

She laughed a bit and kissed him, taking his hand and leading him out of the park, much like he had led her into it. She stopped short, though, and turned around. "El, I…"

"I know," he said. "You don't have to…"

"I love you, too," she interrupted. "I wouldn't have…"

He silenced her with a kiss. "We gotta go home, Benson," he said with a small smile. He saw her eyes flicker with something he didn't recognize, and her hand gripped his tighter. "My place or yours?"

She laughed, relieved, and pulled on his hand as she began to walk again. "Mine," she said. "It's closer." She looked up at the night sky, for the first time that night, and she smiled. "You were right."

"About what?" he asked, speeding up his steps to walk next to her instead of behind her.

She dropped her head to his shoulder as they walked. "It really is beautiful out here."

He laughed again and kissed her, and they walked, making pleasant conversation, all the way to her place in Midtown. He didn't let go of her hand for a single second until they reached her front steps, only dropping it to open the door for her, a smile gracing his lips as he bowed in mock servitude.

She chuckled, shaking her head, and walked with him toward the elevator, hitting the button with an open palm. "Goofball," she teased.

The doors slid open, he pushed her into the lift and pressed her up against the wall, kissing her deeply and gripping her body tightly. He kissed her and caressed her until he heard the ding of the elevator, and he pulled away with a smug expression on his face.

She shook her head and rolled her eyes, following him through the doors and into the hallway. They smiled and whispered to each other as they ambled toward her apartment, but they stopped and their eyes widened as they rounded the corner. "What the hell?"

Keeping her behind him, he moved, looking at the swarm of cops and crime scene investigators spilling out of the door across from Olivia's. "Frank," he said, calling to the detective closest to him. "What happened?"

"Shit, that was fast," Frank said with a surprised laugh. "We just called you…"

"We didn't get a call," Olivia interrupted. "I live here."

Frank looked her up and down, then shifted his eyes to Elliot and gave him an approving nod as he ran his tongue along his lower teeth. "Nice one, Stabler," he said. "Bedding Benson."

Elliot clenched his jaw. "What are you doing here, Lacato?"

Frank chuckled. "Dead girl," he said. He pointed and added, "Raped. Which is why we called you."

"Shawna," Olivia said, her voice low. She stepped closer, moving under the crime scene tape. "Oh, my God," she said, in both shock and sadness.

Elliot moved toward her, but something drew his attention toward Olivia's front door, and he walked over to it with a confused look on his face. There was an envelope taped the wood, and he peeled it off slowly, opening it. He pulled out the card, read it, and his head snapped up. He looked up and down the hallway, then called back to Frank. "Hey! Did you see anyone else walk down this way?"

"Just my boys," Frank said. "Why?"

Elliot walked over and handed Frank the card. "The killer left a calling card. Literally. And apparently he picked his next victim." He shook his head and bit his lip. "He's playing games. He wants us to try to beat him."

Frank read the card and looked up. "He left this on Benson's door, huh?"

Elliot nodded.

"So even this asshat knows you're fuckin' her," Frank said slyly. "Who else knows? Gotta start with the obvious."

Elliot rolled his eyes. "No one knows, Frank," he said. "And for obvious reasons I need it to stay that way."

"Secret's safe with me, Stabler," Frank said. He leaned closer and wagged his brows. "You still keepin' mine?"

Elliot nodded. "Yeah, trust me," he said. "So it's gotta be someone who's watching us."

Frank looked over his shoulder. "Stabler, I think it's someone who's watchin' Benson."

**A/N: Say what? O..O Review here, or on Twitter: TracieOneSeven****Her H**


	4. Better Lock It

**A/N: ****More sex, another lie, and yes…more of that pretty, yellow tape. Just not in that order. **

**DISCLAIMER: SVU and characters belong to Dick Wolf. TStabler© owns this story.**

Olivia sat at her desk, her cell phone in one hand and the station phone in the other. She called everyone she could think of, and was waiting for her neighbor's parents to walk into the room. She kept looking nervously at Elliot, who in return would give reassuring nods and easy smiles.

Cragen and Fin were looking at her, too, but with much more concern in their faces. The man who killed Shawna had chosen his next victim, and had begun a terrifying game of cat and mouse with one of their own, and neither man liked it. At all.

"So he's already picked his next victim, huh?" Fin questioned, his arms folded.

"That what the note says," Olivia mumbled, her lip being gnashed between her teeth.

Elliot handed Fin the card, which was sealed in a clear evidence bag. "I already know who's next on my list. Will you get to her before I do? Or will her blood be on your hands?" he quoted from memory, having read it over and over again for the last few hours. "Sick fuck," he spat, cracking his knuckles.

"Calm down," Olivia warned.

Fin shot up, looking at Olivia with a raised eyebrow. He waved the card at her and said, "He says even your boyfriend can't protect you. What boyfriend?"

Olivia looked at him. She saw a fire in his eyes, hidden behind fire, that she had never seen before. She shrugged, in too much shock to say anything.

"Baby-Girl," Fin said, "Please, don't tell me this piss-ant knows more about you than…"

"She met him out in Oregon," Elliot interrupted, shutting him up. "He's a cop," he added with a small smirk, taking pride in lying and telling the truth at the same time.

Fin's head whipped toward Olivia. "What's his name?"

Olivia sighed, too tired to do this at the moment. "Fin, I don't think…"

"His name, Olivia," Fin barked, cutting her off.

"Joe," she said, flinching. "His…um…his name's Joe."

Fin took a step toward her, almost threatening. "Joe what?"

"Fin!" Cragen yelled. "I think she's been through enough, tonight! Besides, if she wanted you, or anyone else, to know…then she would have told you." He pointed at Fin's chair, sending him back to work, then looked at Olivia. His eyes softened and he sighed. "Her parents are here."

Olivia cleared her throat, and nodded her thanks and acknowledgment at her captain. She got out of her seat, sending a soft look at Elliot, and it wasn't until she shook Shawna's father's hand that she realized Cragen knew Elliot's middle name was Joe. She stiffened as her thoughts shot to him, wondering if he caught it, if he realized it. She was more nervous now than she had been all night.

After watching Olivia take the distraught parents into a conference room, Fin turned to Elliot. "Joe who? Did you know about this? You didn't do anything?"

"Fin, man," Elliot scoffed, rolling his eyes. "Yeah, I knew about him. No, I didn't do anything about it, she was in fucking Oregon! I was still married! What was I supposed to do?"

Fin narrowed his eyes. "You were supposed to do what you always do," he said. "Run a background check, threaten him, and run him off!"

"What do you mean what I always do," Elliot bit back. "I don't always…"

"Yes, you do," Fin said. "You threated Kurt, you told Andy if he ever came back to New York you'd arrest him for something, you told Trevor you'd have him disbarred, you pointed a gun at Michael, you told Danny you were her ex-husband and you wanted her back and he took one look at your tattoos and…"

"All right," Elliot sighed, running a hand down his face. "Maybe I have been a little possessive, but I guess…she's really happy this time, ya know? I can't…"

"I can," Fin interjected. "I wanna meet this fucker. You know him?"

Elliot hid the chuckle well with a soft cough. "Not well, no," he said, and then he looked up. "Just out of curiosity, Fin, what's it to ya? You haven't exactly been nice to her since she came back, and you've been a real ass to me since she left…"

Fin held up a hand. "Yeah, I have my reasons." He got up, turned off his lamp, and said, "I'll be back here at six, workin' Dani's case. I assume you're now on this stalker thing with Benson?"

Elliot nodded. "I shouldn't really be working Dani's case any…"

"Glad you finally understand," Fin interrupted. "By the way, does, uh, does Olivia know you were bangin' Beck?"

Elliot reddened. "I never slept with her, Fin. It was a kiss. One stupid kiss. I don't even know why I told you about it." He smiled a bit. "Oh, yeah. I thought we were friends."

Fin smirked. "You still think so?"

"Not really, no," Elliot said, shaking his head.

Fin chuckled. "Smart," he said. And he was off, heading through the doors. He turned over his shoulder and glared at Elliot. "If anything happens to Olivia, I'm holdin' you personally responsible." He narrowed his eyes then. "On second thought, no. Stay the hell away from her. Remember what happened to the last partner you kissed."

"Fuck off, Fin," Elliot barked, giving him the finger. As he watched Fin go, his gaze shifted toward the conference room. Then, he looked down at his desk, at the notecard. "Dani…Liv's neighbor…what if…" he stopped thinking out loud and looked up to see Olivia coming out of the room with Shawna's parents. Maybe Fin's sorry attempt at an insult held some weight as a threat.

* * *

><p>"What are you watching?" Elliot asked, walking toward the couch in nothing but a pair of sweatpants. He sat beside her, looped an arm around her, and raised his coffee mug to his lips.<p>

"News," she answered, leaning closer to him. She moaned as her head nested on his bare chest, and she closed her eyes and listened to the beating of his heart. "Thanks for taking me back here. I couldn't go to my place. Not after…not tonight."

He swallowed his coffee, looked down at her, and kissed her forehead. "You're apartment's a crime scene, babe. We couldn't go back there, even if you wanted to. They're looking over security tapes and…"

"I know." She turned her body slightly, sinking deeper into him. "You're in a mood."

He pulled her closer. She was almost on top of him as he leaned back over the arm of his leather couch. "I am," he said, nodding once. "I had an interesting little chat with Fin. He wants to meet Joe. And he's pissed at me because I didn't pull any of my usual stunts to get you away from him," he explained. "Nice touch on that name, by the way. I'm calling you Jane from now on, if we're using middle names as covers for this."

She shrugged. "I panicked," she said, dropping a kiss to his chest.

"Hmm, do that again." His eyes closed as he felt her lips graze his skin again, and his fingers twirled around in her hair. He yelped a bit when she bit him, then smirked at her. "Minx," he teased.

She winked at him and sighed, moving up a bit and kissing his lips. "Kathy call?"

He nodded. He kissed her again. "She thinks I'm miserable," he said. He kissed her again. "She wants me to come home."

She back away from him, she stared at him for a moment. "I knew this was gonna happen."

"I told her there was no way in hell," he said, still smirking. "Liv, I'm lying on my couch half naked with you. You think I'm giving this up to go back to Kathy? That's like passing up a bottle of Dom Perignon and reaching for the milk." He smiled when she laughed. "Seriously, I love her, part of me always will. But I'm in love with you, I have been for a long time, and we're finally both in a place…we're both ready for this now. I'm…I'm happy."

She tilted her head and smirked. "I can tell," she said, bucking her hips slightly.

He growled, grabbing her tightly and rolling them over, onto the floor. They landed with a thud and harsh laughs, and he bent his head to kiss and nip at her neck. "Very happy," he whispered, licking the curve of her ear.

She moaned softly, arching into him. "So am I," she said, her hands running softly up and down his back. "And don't think I don't know what you're doing."

"What am I doing?" he asked innocently, picking himself up a bit and fingering the buttons on her pajama top. He let the cotton fall, opening her up to him, and he grinned as he bent his head to take a nipple into his mouth.

"Oh, Jesus," she groaned, arching her back once more. "You're trying to distract me so I don't think about the case, or the maniac who's been watching me. Watching us."

With her bead between his teeth, he mumbled, "Is it working?"

"God, yes," she seethed, as he bit down a bit harder. She clutched his head to her chest as she felt him pulling down the silk pants she wore. She kissed the top of his head and was stunned when he began to move, kissing his way down her body. "Oh, Elliot," she mumbled as he swiped his tongue up her slit, tossing her pants over his shoulder.

He rested one hand over her lower stomach, dragging his fingers in circles around her belly-button. His other hand slipped closer to his mouth, two fingers joined his tongue in stroking her hot flesh. His thumb swooped over and around her clit, making her buck hard, pushing his face deeper into her.

"Yes," she moaned.

He moaned, licking at her, and looked up at her with smoke in his eyes. He moved away from her, then slinked up her body like a lion. He stopped when their eyes met, and he lined up, poking at her entrance. He teasingly nudged his hips, pushing just the head of him into her.

"El," she moaned, her nails now digging deep into his shoulder blades.

"Tell me you love me," he said, a playful grin on his face as he pushed himself in only another inch, then pulled out.

She moaned, frustrated and shivering, and she looked up into his eyes. "I love you," she whispered, all humor gone from her face, leaving only pure sincerity.

He kissed her. He said a very soft, "I love you," then finally thrust into her completely, a mutual satisfied noise from both of them flew through the air. "Oh, God, you feel…" he grunted in lieu of completing his sentence. He eased out, then slowly pushed in, starting a deep, powerful rhythm.

She looked up at him, holding his gaze, and for a moment, she forgot they were on the floor, on a carpet in his apartment. For a moment, she forgot that there was a killer on the loose who had given her a time and a place and a challenge, and warned her that sooner or later, he'd come for her. She forgot, for a moment, that her entire unit now thought she was dating a cop named Joe. She forgot the web of lies she'd weaved, and the mountain of truth she discovered at the same time. For the moment, she was lost in the only man in the world who could make her forget.

He took both of her wrists in one, large hand, and he brought them over her head. He let out a groan when the position elongated her body and exposed her chest, bringing her body up higher and closer to his mouth. He sucked on a nipple, and when he felt her body tighten around him, he let it go. "Baby," he grunted, moving faster.

Her answer was a moan, a soft one. She balled her hands into fists as his lips crashed down onto hers, and she whimpered into his mouth.

His body took over, his brain shut off, his heart pounded against his chest. Fire crept up throughout his form and he moved faster, harder, deeper, busting through the intense tightness Olivia's body was creating. The friction and heat built up and the sounds from them were equal in both volume and emotion.

Her orgasm ripped through her, and he held her down as she trembled. She whimpered, moaned, and cried his name, all of which was muffled by his lips.

He could only hold on for a few moments, a few more thrusts, and when he let go it was intense. He slammed his body hard against hers, and he stilled as he pulsed and shot out into her. Quiet now, he slowed his kiss but didn't stop it. He let go of her wrists and ran his fingers down her right arm and into her hair, caressing and calming.

She, too, was lost in the emotion, and though she had no conscious idea why, a tear rolled down her cheek.

Without saying anything, he brushed it away with his thumb. "I love you," he whispered.

She nodded and sniffled, and kissed him again.

A knock on the door broke them apart completely. "Shit," he said, pulling out of her and reaching for his discarded sweatpants. "It's either Kathy or Cragen, neither of whom need to see you naked on my floor." He winked and helped her up, handed her her clothes, and kissed her quickly before heading for the front door.

He hadn't even reached the knob when something slipped underneath the wood. He raised an eyebrow at it as he turned the doorknob, opened the door a bit, and looked up and down the hall. Seeing no one, he closed the door and bent to pick up the brown envelope. He opened it, slowly, and the color drained form his face.

"What is that?" Olivia asked, buttoning up her pajama top. "El?"

"Rules," he whispered. "The son of a bitch gave us rules!" He tossed the letter to Olivia and ran a hand over his face. "Shit!"

Olivia looked down and read. "I've got her, but no one ever said I was heartless. Follow these simple rules and she lives. Break even one and she dies. Her life is in your hands. Ready, set, go," she read. Then her eyes scanned the list of demands. "Is he serious?"

Elliot nodded. "Apparently," he said, grabbing his cell phone off the table. "I'm leaving a message on Cragen's machine. I'm tired, you need sleep, we can really deal with this in the morning."

"El," she said, handing the paper back to him. "Rule number six…that's kind of…weird. Isn't it?"

Elliot re-read it, and he looked up at her. "Someone had to have…heard you…it's someone in the station?"

"Unless we were bugged somehow," she shrugged. "I have to talk about my boyfriend, Joe, giving details of…"

"I read it," he hissed, dialing the number and holding the phone to his ear. He smirked at her, "Did you read number nine?"

She turned the page toward her and her mouth dropped. "So…he…he's…"

"Watching us," Elliot said, nodding. "Yeah." Cragen's machine picked up and he began to leave the message as he walked into his bedroom. "Cap, it's me. We have a problem."

Olivia watched him go as she bit her lip. Someone wanted to expose her. Expose them, in more ways than one.

**A/N: What is rule number nine? And will they find the psycho before they break a rule? What is up with Fin? Find out! Next!**


	5. In Your Pocket

**A/N: When lies are threatened with exposer, liars will do anything they can to keep their secrets safe.**

**DISCLAIMER: SVU belongs to Dick Wolf, this story, however, belongs to TStabler**

"When did you get this?" Cragen asked, looking down at the list of demands from their killer.

Elliot was chewing on his bottom lip as he said, "Last night. Right when I called you."

"And this one?" Cragen questioned, holding up a newer note in a sealed plastic bag.

Olivia felt a chill run down her spine. "Came in with the mail," she said. "This morning."

"So, wait, you took her to your place," Fin said, pointing at Elliot with a look on his face that was somewhere between terrified and pissed off. "To keep her safe, I assume. And this guy knew that, so he leaves a note under your door?"

"That's what I just said, Fin," Elliot snapped. "Yeah."

Fin shook his head. "She'd be safer with someone else," he said. "Someone no one expects her to be with."

"Oh, you mean you?" Elliot asked, scoffing.

"Yeah." Fin nodded.

Cragen hit his desk. "Enough!" he yelled. "Does anyone care that we have a killer on the loose, who is plotting his next move based on whether or not Elliot plants evidence in Dani's case?" He waved the list of rules around.

Fin held out a hand in defense. "I'm just sayin'…"

Elliot shot back at him, "You're just saying you want to spend some time alone with Liv when she's fragile and…"

"Shut up!" Olivia yelled. "We've got three hours to find this girl," she barked, ripping the list and new letter from Cragen, "And according to this map and list of ridiculous requests, we're being watched and timed!" She ran a hand through her hair. "I would appreciate it if you both stopped thinking about me, and started thinking about the vic!"

Elliot opened his mouth to say something, but snapped it shut. He nodded and folded his arms, poking the inside of his cheek with his tongue.

Fin mumbled something and looked at Cragen. "You want me on this?"

"No," the captain said. "I need you working Beck's case. I got Tucker breathing down my neck since she was a cop and he's still a suspect." He pointed to the door. "Warner has the tox-screen, Morales has her phone records. Take Munch, and call me if you get a new lead."

Fin shot him a look, then turned his eyes toward Olivia and Elliot. "Still think she's not safe with you," he grumbled before leaving.

Olivia shook her head and folded her arms. "So what's the game plan?" she asked, looking back at Cragen.

"Follow the map," he said with a look on his face that seemed to say, 'duh.' "Find the girl, find this prick, and get your asses back here. Preferably in one piece."

Elliot took the letter from Olivia and looked nervously at Cragen. "What about…"

"We'll take care of it," Cragen said. "We know this guy's got his sights on you two, so we're gonna make it look like you've been following these orders. You're the victim here, Elliot. No one is blaming you for any of this, so stop looking at me like…"

"What if he knows?" Elliot whispered, the nerves evident in his voice. "If he's watching us this closely, he…"

Cragen held up a hand. "We will deal with whatever happens. Just go find the girl," he said. He handed Olivia a cell phone and said, "If you get split up, for any reason, push the pound sign on this phone. We'll find you."

Olivia took it, with a question in her eyes. "You really think he's coming after me?"

"I'm not taking any chances," Cragen said with a nod. He watched them leave, and he dropped into his chair. He opened his drawer and slipped a handwritten card sealed in an envelope out of it, placing it on his desk in front of him. He read it again, and just as the first time, he paled when the words echoed through his mind.

_ Tell her to follow the map. Keep her with Stabler. Two can keep a secret if one of them is dead, and one is running out of time. Tick, tock, Captain Cragen._

He squeezed his eyes shut and prayed that he did what the lunatic wanted, and he would leave Olivia unharmed.

* * *

><p>"Which way?" Elliot asked, panting. They'd been running for blocks. "Liv! Which way…"<p>

"I don't know, Elliot! Stop yelling!" she shouted, out of breath herself, as she turned the hand-drawn map around in her hands. "Left! Go left!"

He ran, turning left and bolting, hearing her boots click behind him. "Stay with me, Liv!" he yelled behind him.

"I'm right here," she breathed. "Hold on, El. Stop! Stop," she stopped running, and she bent over a bit as she looked at the paper in her hand. "We're here." She straightened up and looked around. "Do you see anything?"

Elliot, who had gone still and quiet, nodded. "Yeah," he said, his eyes closing as he took one deep breath.

Olivia followed his eyes, and she went cold. Her eyes widened and she ran. "No," she spat. "No!"

"Liv!" he yelled, running after her. "Damn it, Olivia!"

She stopped near the crumpled body lying in the alley, and she fell to her knees. "Fuck," she spat, ripping the pinned note off of her jacket. "Not only were you late, but you broke the rules. She died because you failed. She didn't suffer, but next time I won't be so nice." She stopped reading and a tear rolled down her cheek. "El," she said softly.

He knelt beside her and read over her shoulder, his face falling. "Oh, my God," he said, taking the note from her. "It's the same case." He ran his finger over the scrawled numbers at the bottom, the same numbers that were on the badge found in Dani Beck's hand. "Tucker? But I thought…"

"No," Olivia said, getting to her feet. "That's too easy. He's a blackmailing son of a bitch but he's…"

"Liv, he manipulated you into taking that case because of me," Elliot said, standing. "He gave you rules just like this asshole is doing. Maybe this is his…I mean since he couldn't really tell Kathy anything…he said he was gonna..."

"Oh, it's a large jump from breaking up an already failing marriage to cold-blooded murder, Elliot," she snapped.

He squinted. "Why are you defending him?"

"I'm not," she said. "I just don't think he would do this. He wouldn't waste time making us play cat and mouse, he'd just fire your ass." She pulled out her phone and called Cragen, telling him that they found the girl, but that she was already dead. She heard him curse, then hang up. She made another call to Doctor Warner, trying to get this case closed as fast as possible.

Elliot stayed next to her, but he stayed quiet. He read the note over and over, finding the threat cruel but viable. Someone knew all about him and Olivia, and at any momment, their secret would be out. He couldn't let that happen. Not yet. "Liv?"

She hummed, hanging up the phone after speaking with the coroner.

"You know…you know I love you, right?" he asked, turning to look at her.

She nodded, biting her lip. "But?"

He shook his head. "No but," he told her. "I'm not gonna let this sick freak rip us apart. No matter what this letter says, I'm not doing it. I'm drawing the line, here."

She bent down again, tilting her head as she looked at the girl's blank face. "We did everything he wanted us. We told Cragen everything he said to tell him. What the fuck rule did we break?"

"I dunno," Elliot shrugged. "Maybe you didn't talk about your boyfriend enough. Maybe I didn't call Kathy enough times. Maybe your pants weren't tight enough, or maybe the guy never had any intention of letting this girl go, no matter what we did. Maybe he's lying, Liv."

She looked up at him, surprise in her eyes. "Lying. He stops when we stop," she said, understanding something. "He knows this…whatever this is…is wrong. He knows we can't tell anyone. We'd lose our jobs, you'd lose your family, it would destroy everything. He's testing us. He wants to see how far we'd go to keep…"

Sirens and flashing lights stopped her words, they both straightened up and watched the cops and medical team heading for them. They shared a look, then made a silent promise to work the case without letting anything slip.

"We'll get him," he told her with a firm nod. "We have to."

She took a breath and nodded back. Some secrets, they believed, were worth keeping.

* * *

><p>The night dragged on, the clues they had were few and nearly useless, and the cause of death for the girl in the alley, as far as Melinda Warner could tell, was natural causes. They were stumped, and they were exhausted.<p>

"So, this isn't a rape-murder," Munch said, peering over his glasses. "The girl was already dead before he sent that first note?"

"Guess so," Elliot said. "But Shawna Reeves was definitely…"

Olivia groaned at the mention of her name. "Yeah, she was," she said. "So he's definitely…"

"You two," Cragen shouted as he walked into the bullpen, pointing to Olivia and Fin. "In my office. Now."

Elliot's eyes narrowed. "What?"

"You heard me," Cragen said. "For once, it isn't you I'm mad at, Stabler." He waited for a very confused Olivia and angry-looking Fin to walk into his office before slamming the door. "What the hell is going on with you two?"

Olivia's brow furrowed and her arms crossed. "Nothing," she said. "At all."

"Yet," Fin scoffed, droppiing into a chair.

Olivia shot him a look. "What?"

Cragen moved to his desk and sat, then looked at Olivia. "If anything…I mean, I always expected to catch you and Stabler but…Fin…I just…"

"Captain!" Olivia yelled. "I am telling you, nothing is going on between me and Fin!"

"Explain this, then," Cragen shouted, sliding three photos toward her. He raised both eyebrows. "Well?"

Olivia lifted the pictures, she pressed her lips together, and she sighed. "They're fake," she said. "You can tell…see the lines…the distortion. Fin's head has been pasted on…"

"Prove it," Cragen snapped, pulling the photos away from her. "It's dark, you're…you're in the middle of the fucking park, Olivia. Anyone could have seen…"

With closed eyes and shaking hands, she said, "Elliot."

"What?" Cragen and Fin asked together, both looking at her in shock.

"I was there…" she said. "With…"

Elliot burst through the door, then, holding up a printout from one of the computers. "We got him," he said. "Security camera from Liv's building…what the hell are those?" he asked. He squinted. "Shit, so…you know?"

"Know what?" Fin asked, folding his arms.

"Those pictures," Elliot said, pointing. "That's…"

Cragen looked down at them, examining the body and forgetting about the face he saw. He groaned then looked up at Elliot. "You," he mumbled. He rolled his eyes and got out of his seat. "You and Benson follow that lead, Stabler. Fin, you and Munch handle Beck's paperwork. I gotta go upstairs, I have to talk to..."

"Tucker?" Elliot asked, smirking.

Cragen let out a breath and shook his head. "Morales," he said. "He pulled these pictures off of the cell phone your vic had in her pocket." He walked toward the door, toward Elliot. "Someone's playing games, and now instead of the two of you…" he paused and looked at Fin. "It's the three of you."

Elliot looked at Olivia, then at Fin, then back to Olivia. He was confused, he was scared, and he was pissed off. His cell phone rang, and he answered it as he held a hand out to Olivia.

Without thinking, she took it, and the two walked out of Cragen's office and off to work on their case.

"Yeah, Kathy," Elliot said into the phone. "Everything's fine. Liv? Yeah, she's…she's my partner. No, uh, the others were just tempor…well, thank you. I didn't really get too close to her, but…I know you do. Yeah. Me, too, Kath. Kiss the kids goodnight for me? No. Not tonight." He sighed as he hit the call-button for the elevator. "Bye, Kathy."

"That sounded friendly," Olivia said, stepping into the lift.

Elliot followed her with a sigh. "She wanted me to go…she thought that since I'd been calling more, I missed her. I'm not…"

"Whoa," Olivia said, falling into Elliot as the elevator jerked. It stopped, then, and the light went out.

"What just happened?" Elliot asked, blindly searching for the elevator buttons. "Power go out?"

Olivia clicked on a pen-light she'd taken out of her pocket and helped him find the emergency button. They pushed it together and looked at each other. "You okay?" she asked.

He wrapped his arms around her and nodded. "You?"

"Fine," she said, sinking deeper into him. She waved the light around, looking for the phone box, but stopped when she found something on the wall. "El," she said, her voice soft.

Elliot looked toward the light, and he cursed under his breath as he reached for the envelope with their names on it. He tore it open and Olivia held the light above it so they could read. He read out loud, "Almost dropped the ball, but I proved that your captain isn't as swift as he should be. There was a reason for the head-swap, Benson. Use this time alone to think about it, and when you're done thinking, feel free to get a little hot and heavy. Your secret's still safe, for now. And remember, I'm watching you."

They both looked up, their eyes landing on the blinking red light of the camera. "When the power goes out the camera goes off," Olivia whispered.

"This thing didn't break down, baby," he whispered back. "It was shut off." He tugged on his tie and said, "And is it just me or is it getting really hot in here?"

"El," she whined, shining her flashlight on the wall behind her. The numbers on the panel were rising. "He shut off the air. He's turning up the heat."

Elliot punched the wall to his left, making the metal box shake a bit, and he unbuttoned the top two buttons of his collar. He watched the numbers stop, and he looked at Olivia. "You still have that phone Cragen gave you?"

She nodded, tugging off her jacket. She pulled the small cell phone out of her pocket and after rolling up her sleeves, she handed it to Elliot. "Jesus," she hissed, sliding dow the wall and undoing three buttons of her shirt.

Elliot sat beside her as he flipped open the cell phone and pushed the pound key. He slid it to his left, leaving it on and open, and he unbuttoned his shirt the rest of the way. He shook it off then pulled Olivia closer to him. He pulled her top out of her pants and over her head and brushed her hair back. "We're gonna be okay."

She chuckled. "Yeah," she said. "We're also gonna be naked." She let her head fall back against the cool metal of the elevator, and she thought about those pictures. "Why would someone put Fin's head…wait…"

"What are you mumbling about?" he asked, turning to her.

"Those photos," she said. "Your body, Fin's head. It had nothing to do with getting Cragen to think I was sleeping with Fin, because this guy is trying to get us to admit we're together. I think he was trying to tell us…"

"Fin's taking my place somehow," he mused.

"El," Olivia said, starting to sweat, "He isn't after you anymore. He wants me...and Fin."

A bead of sweat dripped down his forehead as he looked up at the red light again, and he pulled Olivia closer to him. "He can have Fin," he said. "But he's not getting you." As his eyes moved, landing on the grate in the cileing, he smirked. He had an idea.

**A/N: Can they keep their secret? When someone else's lie is uncovered, the game of cat and mouse becomes a very deadly one.**


	6. Take This One To Your Grave

**A/N: Getting closer….or are they?**

**DISCLAIMER: Dick Wolf own SVU and the characters; TStabler© owns the story you're about to read.**

"What the hell happened to you two?" Cragen asked, watching Olivia and Elliot, both soaked to the bone with sweat, walk back into the squad room.

Walking over to the air conditioner, Elliot said, "Don't take the elevator."

Olivia threw the card that was left for them at Cragen. "He's here," she said, before joining Elliot in front of the vent. She moaned when the cold air hit her body, and she rolled her neck absently.

Elliot stared at her for a moment too long. His mouth ran dry, his dick hardened instantly. He cleared his throat as he shifted his weight and put his damp jacket back on. "What time is it?"

"Quarter to twelve," she grumbled. "Been in that fucking elevator for three hours."

Elliot chuckled. "It wasn't all bad," he said, his voice low.

She smirked at him. "Okay, so an hour of it was phenomenal," she whispered to him. "I know you had the idea to climb out of the air vent way before..."

"So sue me," he shrugged. "The guy did say to get...wait," he looked at his watch. "Shit! I gotta go. Cap, I'm on lunch." He gave Olivia a soft brush down her shoulder, then turned around. He ran out of the squad room and down the hall, out of sight.

Cragen looked at her, folding his arms. "You're not gonna go with him?"

"Why, uh, why would I?" she asked, moving back toward her desk.

"You've been gone for a long time, Olivia," Cragen said. "You've only been back for a little over a week, someone's already after you, I assumed you and he...would stay together." He narrowed his eyes. "Especially after that incident in the park."

Olivia cringed. She'd forgotten about that. "That was...we're not...together. He's.."

"He's getting a divorce, you're lonely, and you were just giving each other what you needed?" Cragen mused sarcastically. "I don't buy it."

"I told you," she said, looking down at a bunch of papers on her desk. "I'm seeing someone."

Cragen grinned. "Oh, yeah. Joe. The cop you met out in Oregon," he said. "Funny, I had a list of all your contacts out there. No one named Joe was on it."

She looked up, her eyes suddenly cold. "What do you want from me?"

Cragen leaned over, his own eyes fierce. "The same thing this bastard wants, Olivia. This would all end if you just told..."

"You think so?" she sneered. "Read that note! The asshole is in the building! He knows what we're doing, where we are, every second of every day! Shit, if it was a simple case of coming clean...about something that may not even be true...he wouldn't be going through so much trouble! He also wouldn't drag Fin into it."

Cragen read the message from the elevator. He hummed and said, "He would if he knew Fin was in love with you, too." He looked up at Olivia. "He's got his sights set on you, Benson, and he's gonna take down every man in his way."

She rolled her eyes. "For the last time," she said with a tense jaw. "It isn't Tucker."

"I know it's not," Cragen said. "The man's an ass, and he wants Stabler out of here, but he wouldn't destroy both of your lives to get that." He slid the card back to Olivia. "Do the numbers mean anything to you? Besides being Tucker's badge number?"

"Zero, nine, two, zero," she mumbled. "No, I just..."

"Think about it," Cragen said. "And while you're at it, think about the people in your life who would try to get you alone, get you...really alone." He took a step toward his office. "Someone else who knew you'd be coming back here after that case in Oregon."

She leaned back. "You know?"

"No," he said, shaking his head. "Just throwing some ideas your way. It's your case. Until it gets personal."

She gave him a small smile. "You mean until I really am the vic..."

"Not gonna happen," Fin interrupted, coming back into the squad room with Munch. "I'm not gonna let that happen."

She rolled her eyes. "For someone who cares so much, you've been a real treat to be around since I got back."

Fin shrugged as he took off his jacket and said, "I'm havin' a bad week."

"Not as bad as Dani Beck," Munch said, shaking his head. "Or Shawna..." he looked at Olivia. "Why do you look like a freshly bathed poodle?"

She laughed. "I had a run in with a fire hydrant," she joked. Her cell phone bleeped, then, and she made an odd face when she looked down at it. The text message, from an unknown number, said simply, _When the cat's away. _Along with it, a picture of Elliot at the cafe down teh street. With Kathy.

Trying to stay calm, Olivia slipped the phone into her pocket. "Speaking of Beck," she said, biting her lip. "Where'd you get on that?"

"Nada. What did you get from the security camera?" Fin countered.

Olivia shrugged. "Guy in a black jacket. Hood up, sunglasses, and gloves. Came out of Shawna's door, ran over to mine and slapped the card to my door, then took off. A whole lotta nothing."

Munch picked up the card in its bag, looking at it curiously. "No lead on these digits yet?"

"Not yet." Olivia looked back down at her cell phone, trying to stay calm and give Elliot the benefit of the doubt. He had children with the woman, and the divorce was still pending. They were probably discussing custody arrangements, and he didn't tell her because they were trapped in a hot elevator. Making it even hotter.

"Maybe it's a date?" Munch said, then, snapping Olivia out of her thoughts. "Maybe? Zero, nine, two, zero. September Twentieth?"

Fin scoffed. "The day you left."

Olivia snapped her head toward him. "What?"

"September Twentieth," Fin said. "That was the day we came in to find you gone."

Olivia gasped a bit. She went white, rose form her seat, grabbed her sell and her keys, and said, "I gotta go talk to someone."

Munch and Fin watched her leave before the older man said, "Should she really be going anywhere alone?"

Fin smirked. "No," he said, getting up. "I got this." He grabbed his jacket and followed after her.

* * *

><p>She threw the door open fast, her breath coming in hard bouts. "Elliot?" she called. "Elliot, what happened?"<p>

"You got my text," Elliot said, running to the door. He pulled her into his arms, but she pushed her way out of them.

"I was on my way to see someone who could help us out," she spat. "I'm not dealing with this son of a bitch anymore. What the fuck was so important that..."

"Slow down," he said, taking her hand. "What's wrong with..."

She ripped her hand out of his. "Why didn't you tell me you were having lunch with Kathy?"

He closed his eyes and let out a short scoff. "He told me not to," he said flatly. "I had to meet her to talk about the kids, and...I got a text message last night. Our pal told me not to tell you, he didn't want me to upset you." He chuckled. "Fat lot of good that did."

"Yeah, well," she handed him her phone. "Look at the messages! He obviously wanted me upset! He's playing us, El! First it was together, now it's against each other! And, by the way, I don't care of the Pope asks you to keep something from me, Elliot, you…"

"You were jealous," he said, his eyes darkening. He reached for her, but she backed away.

She tilted her head. "I'm still pissed at you," she said. "What exactly did he say he would…"

"You," he said with wickedly gleaming eyes, taking another step toward her, "Were jealous."

She took a step back only to realize she was up against the wall now. Her body tightening by the minute, and her breath becoming short, she said, "So what if I was?"

He ran a hand down her arm and said, "Tell me why?"

She closed her eyes as he tugged on her sleeve. "Bastard," she hissed.

He chuckled and said, "The look in your eyes when you came in, fuck, that was hot."

"What, I'm not hot now?" she asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Oh," he said, slipping his hand between her legs and rubbing hard, "You're fucking hot, all the damn time."

She pushed him back and said, "Elliot, I'm really mad at…"

He cut her off, his kiss was brutal, and his hands gripped her hips.

Moaning, partly in protest, she clawed at the buttons of his shirt. They went flying, letting his shirt fall open, and her nails kept scratching at his now bare chest.

He groaned, still kissing her hard, and he bucked his hips, rubbing his hard length against her. He pulled away from her lips, gasping for air. "Fuck," he seethed, looking down and seeing her nails climbing back up his body.

"She ever scratch you?" she asked, her voice throaty. He knee moved, nudging his erection. "Huh?"

He shook his head and threw his head back as he groaned her name. "Shit, baby," he hissed, feeling her nails rake over his shoulders and down his back. He grunted as he kissed her hard again and tugged off his shirt.

She moaned as he pressed into her, her fingers digging deeper into his back. "Oh, my God," she moaned, feeling his lips slide from hers to her neck. "Oh, God, Elliot."

He moaned intelligibly as he bared his teeth, running them lightly over her flesh. He smirked, he chuckled, then he bit. Hard.

"Fuck!" she choked, lifting one leg and running it up his body.

He grabbed her leg as he grunted and bucked his hips again. He moaned, his teeth still dinking into her neck, as she dragged her sharp nails up his spine, up his neck, leaving angry red streaks behind.

"El," she moaned, her body moving against his, "El, please."

He sucked hard on her neck and hummed. His hands slid down to the zip of her pants and shoving it down. One hand slipped inside, rubbing her through the cloth of her panties, as the other worked to get the black cotton down over her hips. "What?" he whispered.

Scraping her nails through his hair, she moaned, almost whined. "God, baby, please…"

He gripped the hem of her underwear, twisted it around his hand, and yanked, ripping it from her body as he grunted. He moved his mouth down her neck, stopping at her chest, and nipped over her bra, pinching her nipple between his teeth lightly. "What?" he said again, his hands now working to get his own pants off.

Her hands dragged down his face and neck, over his chest again, and she moaned when he did. Her fingers joined his in working the fly of his pants and they shared in sliding the material over his thighs.

He sucked harder on her nipple and bit with more force, before letting go and licking a long line back up to her mouth. Taking her face in his hands, he kissed her and moved forward, thrusting into her fast.

She cried out into his mouth and her leg gripped his body tight. Her fingers curled and snapped the skin beneath them, and she scratched hard.

"God!" he shouted, his head falling back again. "Fuck." His hips moved faster, harder. His hands wound around her body.

Her eyes flashed and she scratched up his body, grabbing his head and pulling it closer to her. "Did she ever take it like this?" she asked.

He shook his head madly, his thrusts never slowing. "Never," he spat. "Never gave it to her like this." He slammed both of his up against the wall, on either side of her shoulders, and he kissed her as he pummeled her.

"Oh, God, Elliot," she moaned, her hands falling back down to his chest. "Please…"

"What, baby," he said gently, kissing her chin softly.

She met his eyes, she bit his bottom lip and tugged, and she said, in a very husky tone, "Don't stop."

He growled then, his lips slanted over hers, and he moved harder. He hit against her with every thrust and balled his hands into fists. He felt her arms wrap around him, he felt her legs pull him deeper into her, and he felt her tightening with every slam.

Her head fell back into the wall behind her, his lips stayed attached to hers, and she met every powerful move he was making with one of her own. The burning started in her toes, it climbed up her legs and settled low in her belly. Her body tensed and she heard him curse under his breath.

"God, baby," he said, muffled by their kiss. "I need…" a grunt finished his sentence. He moved one hand down from the wall, sliding it over her body, and he settled his thumb over her clit. He rubbed hard and fast, flicking and twisting over it, sending her body into overdrive.

"Oh, God," she breathed, her body rocking faster between him and the wall. "El," she gasped. Her back arched, her feet curled. Her chest heaved and her entire body trembled.

He kissed her with more heat as he worked toward his own blessed release, his hips still thrusting, still pistoning within her. With one hard thrust and long, low growl, he came, spilling into her.

She crumpled in his arms, her body molding to his, and she shook slightly as she dropped soft kisses to his shoulder. "What was…"

"You're not the only jealous one," he interrupted, panting. He kissed her once and pulled back, easing her gently to the floor. He ran his fingers over each bruise his mouth had made on her skin.

She did the same, running a finger lightly over the bleeding lines on his chest. "Sorry," she whispered.

He shook his head. "Don't be," he said, his chest rising and falling fast.

She looked up at him, into his eyes, and she blinked once. "That text…what was so important I needed to come here?"

He smiled. "Well, aside from my constant need to be inside you," he said with a tight jaw and a soft kiss. "I got a text, too. A picture of you and some guy...from months ago, though. I could tell by your hair. And then he texted me saying someone was following you, and I had to get you back here." He sighed again. "You were right. He's playing us."

She looked up at him and she smiled a bit. "You," she said, leaning forward to kiss him, "Were jealous."

"Fuck, yeah, I was," he chuckled. He brushed her hair back and said, "I know you'd never…"

He was interrupted when the door swung open. "Olivia!" the man who'd burst in yelled, aiming his gun.

"Oh, my God!" she yelped, trying to hide herself behind Elliot, who quickly grabbed a pillow off of the nearest chair to cover himself up. "Fin! What the hell are you…"

"I heard yelling." Fin took a step forward, his gun still raised and pointed at Elliot. "Why are you bleeding?"

Elliot rolled his eyes. "We were playing a game of vampires and werewolves," he scoffed. "Man, what the fuck do you think…"

"Are you okay, Liv?" Fin asked, trying to look beyond Elliot to her.

"Liv?" Elliot questioned, both eyebrows raised. "Are you serious?"

Olivia dug her nails into Elliot's ass as she palmed it, shutting him up. "I'm fine," she said, still concealing herself as best she could. "I'm…I'm just fine. You need to leave, Fin. I'm not…"

"I got a text," Fin said, still aiming at Elliot. "Said you needed help."

Elliot chuckled. "Whatever it was she needed help with, I'm pretty sure I took care of it." He felt her slap him. "Ow! Hey," he laughed, looking over his shoulder. He looked back at Fin. "Have a little respect and get out of here so we can get dressed, huh?"

Fin glared at Elliot, he tilted his gun a bit and scowled, his eyes narrowing. He was so close to pulling the trigger, and Elliot saw it. He dropped his arm, then, and shook his head. "Does your wife know about this?"

"Ex-wife," Elliot said.

"Whatever," Fin said, shaking his head as he walked out and slammed the door behind him.

Elliot immediately turned and wrapped his arms around Olivia. "Jesus," he hissed.

It was then they heard beeping, the sound of their phones alerting them to new text messages. They bent down, each picking up their own clothes. They dressed in silence as they checked their phones.

"Liv?" Elliot asked a silent question after that, raising an eyebrow.

She looked at him and nodded. "Yeah," she said, closing her eyes. "Me, too." She pulled on her shirt, and grabbed her jacket. "You coming?" she asked.

He smirked and licked his lips. "I just did," he said smugly, zipping his pants and following her. "Where are we going?"

She turned, no hint of a smile on her face. "Do you remember Star?"

**A/N: Say wha? What does Dana Lewis have to do with this? **


	7. If I Show You, Then I Know

**A/N: ****Sometimes I feel Like...Somebody's Watching Me**

**DISCLAIMER: Dick Wolf own SVU and the characters; TStabler© owns the story you're about to read.**

Elliot and Olivia were standing too close to each other just outside of Dana Lewis's apartment. Elliot reached out and knocked, then turned to Olivia. "Why are we here, exactly?"

"She knows who's screwing with us," Olivia replied. "At least, she'll have an idea."

Elliot squinted. "You really think it's someone from Oregon?"

She nodded as the door opened. A little girl stood before them. "She never told me she had kids," Olivia whispered.

"Are you Persephone?" the little girl asked.

Olivia looked at Elliot curiously. "El?"

"I know," he said, folding his arms.

Olivia turned back to the child. "Yes, honey," she said sweetly, with a smile. "What's your name?"

"Caroline," the young one said. "The man in the sunglasses asked me to give you this." She handed Olivia a box.

Olivia took it, glancing at Elliot. She looked down at it and opened it, then covered her mouth with a hard, "Jesus Christ." She thrust the box at Elliot.

Nudging the finger aside, he lifted a card out of the box. "She knew too much," he read. "Is this Dana's..."

"Finger," Olivia nodded, suppressing the urge to throw up. She punched the wall and made an angry noise.

"Easy, Liv. Not in front of her." Elliot looked down at the girl. "Honey, who was the man in the sunglasses?"

The child shrugged.

"Is he here?" Olivia asked, trying to breathe.

The girl shook her head. "He left with the crying lady." She blinked. "Can I go now? My mommy is waiting for me, but the man gave us money to..."

"Ya know what?" Elliot said, interrupting her with a soft smile. "We're gonna take you to your mommy."

"Crying lady? Oh, God," Olivia said, realizing something. "El, that's not her finger."

* * *

><p>After taking the girl back home to her mother, who told them that the man was wearing a black hoodie and sunglasses, they got back into the sedan and were on their way to take the finger in the box to Melinda Warner.<p>

"Liv," Elliot asked, glancing at her in the passenger seat, "What does she know?"

"Everything," Olivia whispered.

Elliot rolled his eyes. "Everything," he scoffed. "Like what? What was there to tell? We weren't even together when you left."

"In Orgeon," she began, "I used to...talk in my sleep. I said things...about you. Apparently, I called your name out. A lot."

He smirked at her. "Really now?"

"Jackass," she spat. "Yeah. And when we were alone, ya know, just the few of us who were cops, she asked me why. I told her everything, El. How I felt about you, what I would do if I came back to New York to find you'd left. What I would do if I came home and found out Kathy left you...which was...ya know...pretty much what I did."

He chuckled. "Yeah, you were, um, pretty forward that night."

She shrugged. "Just went after what I wanted," she said. "It was lonely out in Oregon."

"Well, so you know," he said, "You can do that again anytime you want."

She smiled at him, and then it faded. "After we get this guy, okay?"

"Yeah," he sighed. As he turned down a side street, his cell phone beeped. "Can you get that?" he asked.

She reached into the cup holder and grabbed his phone, flipping it open. "It's him," she said through clenched teeth. "Turn left," she said, reading the text message.

"What? How does he even..." he was interrupted by another beep.

"Turn left now," she read to him. "El, just do it. Don't mess with this asshole."

Elliot sighed and turned left. "Now what?" he asked, huffing.

As if on cue, another text message arrived. Olivia looked at the screen, blinking once. "Pull over," she said.

Elliot pulled the car over to the right and parked. "How the fuck does he know what we're doing, all the damned time?"

Olivia shrugged as she read the newest text. "Both of you, get out. Leave your guns in the car."

"Bullshit," Elliot snipped.

"Yeah," Olivia said, nodding. "That's not happening." She put down his phone, and keeping her gun right where it was, she got out of the car. She walked around and met Elliot on his side, and they both folded their arms.

"Olivia?" a voice called.

They both turned, and saw a woman standing in the doorway of the building behind them. "Dana!" Olivia yelled, running toward her.

"Stop!" Dana called. "Stay there. Please, Olivia, just...stay back."

"Are you okay?" Elliot yelled to her.

Dana closed her eyes and took a deep breath. "He wants me to tell you...that your secrets are all safe, as long as you do what he says."

"Who?" Olivia asked. "Who is he?"

Dana sniffled, trying not to cry. "You know, Olivia. If you think about it, you know."

Elliot moved toward her, only a step.

"Stabler, stay there!" Dana yelled. A gun was now pressed to her temple, a gloved hand was the only visible part of the person holding it. "Please?" she asked softly as a tear rolled down her cheek.

"Oh, God," Olivia said, reaching for her gun.

"Don't!" Dana yelled, her eyes wide. "He also wants me to tell you..." she paused to swallow hard. "That you should have left your guns in the car."

Olivia and Elliot watched helplessly as Dana was pulled backward through the door. They heard a single gunshot, and Olivia shouted, "No! Dana!"

Elliot looked at her and then both ran as fast as they could, drawing their weapons.

Kicking down the door, Elliot looked all around, but he saw nothing. "Shit," he hissed. "Liv, there's no way he just shot her. He'd be dragging..."

Olivia, pale and shaking, nodded. "Right," she said. "You're right." She took a breath and put her gun back in its holster. "So where'd they go?"

Elliot shook his head, then they heard her cell phone chirp. She reached for it, and lifted it out of her pocket with a trembling hand. She couldn't even look at it; she held it out to Elliot.

He looked down, swallowed, and read the message. "Now only four of us know and are alive to tell. Watch your step, or it will only be three."

"Four?" Olivia asked, squinting.

"You, me," he said. "This fuck, and..."

"Cragen," Olivia said quietly. "I think he knows."

Elliot pulled her by the arm, into him, and he held her for a moment. "I'm so sorry," he whispered.

Shaking still, she nodded. "Me, too." She sniffled and cleared her throat before pulling away and looking at him. She kissed him softly and said, "We should still...that finger...and we should send some people out to find Dana's body..."

"If she's really dead," Elliot said. "This could just be another one of his games."

She nodded once and tugged on her jacket. "Yeah," she said. She let go of his collar and walked calmly back out of the building, knowing Elliot was watching her the whole way to the car.

* * *

><p>They drove the finger to Warner, then headed up to Technical Response and Analysis. They handed both of their cell phones over to the lead technician, telling him what the situation was, and hoping he could help.<p>

"I'm sorry," Morales said, shaking his head. "All of these text messages came from an anonymous web server, not a cell phone. Bouncing ISP, no saved data, and no phone number."

"So they're untraceable," Elliot said, biting his lip.

"That's what I just said," Morales said flatly. "What I can tell you, is that they came from the Chelsea are of the city. Every messages delivery location spirals out from Eighteenth Street. I don't have an exact address, or a name, but now you have a place to start."

"Thanks," Elliot said, slapping the man on the shoulder.

Morales smiled. "Anytime," he said, handing them back their phones.

They each took their device, walking away, neither one noticing Morales slipping two small bits of metal into a clear plastic bag.

Morales picked up his phone as soon as the two left. He dialed and waited. "Captain Cragen? Morales up in TARU. No, everything's fine, just, uh, I'm gonna send someone down to check the phones in your squad room. Well, I think you've been bugged."

"Hey, Baby Girl," Fin said, standing up as Olivia walked into the room. "Can we talk for a second?"

She ran a hand down her face and shook her head. "I'm not having a good day, Fin. What?"

Fin looked over at Elliot, right beside Olivia. "Can we get a minute alone?"

"No," Elliot answered sharply. "Talk."

Fin rolled his eyes, then looked at Olivia. "We cool? I mean, I know I've been kind of an ass to you, but...ya know, we were all worried about you, and havin' you come back, and just fallin' into things like nothin's changed, it...you leavin'...it changed everythin'."

"What did it change?" she challenged. "I mean, what did you really expect, Fin?"

Fin shrugged and said, "I thought time out there would give you room to think. Make some decisions. Get a handle on things." He lowered his voice. "Figure how you really feel about certain things. And people."

Olivia caught on, but chose to ignore what he was trying to make her say. "Elliot's my partner. You had to know that when I came back, I would still..."

"Well, I didn't, okay?" Fin said, sighing and shrugging. "I thought maybe Beck would stick around, Munch would retire, and I'd get..."

"Beck couldn't handle the job," Elliot interrupted. "She couldn't even handle being around real victims! You heard the way she talked to them? How she treated them."

"Yeah," Fin scoffed, "No wonder you two didn't work out. Only enough room for one asshole in your relationships, right?" He narrowed his eyes. "How are things with you and the wife, by the way?"

Elliot glared. "Fuck you, Fin," he spat. He looked at Olivia and said, "If we're done here, I'd like to go home."

"You're not going anywhere," Cragen said, his arms folded, standing in front of his office door with a small stack of paper in his hand. "You and Benson are staying here until this is over." He looked at Fin. "You, too, considering you're on this fucker's hit-list, too."

"What?" Elliot yelled. "Are you...you have to be fucking..."

"I'm not kidding," Cragen said. "Cribs downstairs in Narcotics, there are two separate rooms, since I know how much you enjoy each other's company."

Elliot scoffed. "Right," he said. "Why are we all of a sudden..."

"Protective detail," Cragen interrupted, "Has also been ordered on the three of you, and Elliot, I had your wife and kids moved to your mother's place. They haven't been threatened, so relax. I would just rather be safe than..."

"Thanks," Elliot said, biting his lip. "So when are you gonna tell us what happened to make you take all of these little precautions?"

Cragen scratched his head. "Got another letter." He handed the paper in his hand to Elliot.

Elliot looked down at it, his brow furrowing. "I know something you don't know. Now I'm the one with the secret. I bet you're all just dying to know. Or, at least, one of you will be." He looked up. "I don't get it."

"This came with it," Cragen said, handing Elliot another piece of paper.

"Jesus," Elliot huffed, taking it. "Um...what am I looking at here?"

Cragen tapped the paper. "DNA analysis," he said. "Look at the name."

Elliot searched the paper and his eyes widened. "MicroLab full spectrum relationship analysis, Subject A, Detective Olivia Benson, to Subject B, Unknown Specimen A-Fifty-Five?"

Olivia read it over his shoulder and choked back a sob. "He knows who my father is."

**A/N: WHO KNOWS?**


	8. You Won't Tell What I Said

**A/N: Lies are easier to handle than the truth.**

**DISCLAIMER: SVU belongs to Dick Wolf, this story, however, belongs to TStabler**

"Well," Elliot said with a sigh, flopping down onto the lumpy mattress beside Olivia, "At least we get our own room."

She shook her head, trying not to laugh. "This isn't a vacation, El. Someone's trying to…"

"Liv," he said, stopping her, scooting closer to her. "We have had a shitty week already, I am trying to enjoy this moment of peace, as crazy as that sounds." He ran his hand up and down her back. "Come here."

With a sigh, she flattened out beside him, letting him cuddle close to her. Her pants were hung off the post of the bed, with his suit. Her bare legs tangled with his and she said, "Yes?"

He kissed her forehead. "Are you okay? I mean, given everything that's happened…you seem calm. Almost like you don't…"

"I have you," she interrupted, kissing his cheek. "I am trying to stay calm. Focused. If this is all just some game…I…" she cleared her throat and dropped her head to his chest. "They never found Dana, they looked everywhere so…I choose to believe she's alive. He still has her. And this whole thing with Fin…"

Elliot laughed. "Man, he really looked like he was gonna shoot me," he said. "He stayed there a little too long, stared a little too much. And I am so thankful that you're small enough to be completely covered by me. If he would have seen…"

"Oh, God, that was embarrassing," she mumbled, burying her face in him. "And then he wanted me to talk to him about my feelings? I can't even look at him!"

He kissed her forehead, sliding a hand down her body. "You don't have to look at him," he whispered, trailing his fingers along the waistband of her panties. "You just have to look at me."

She tilted her head up, saw the intensity of his gaze, and jumped a bit when she felt his fingers slide down, stroking over her through the cotton. "I'm looking at you," she said.

"What do you see?" he asked her softly, trailing a finger over her clothed slit.

She swallowed back a moan, and she whispered, "Everything."

He held her eyes with his, lightly moving the tips of his fingers over her, teasing, tantalizing, begging. He felt heat, wetness, both seeping through the thin material. He moaned, moving his head a bit to capture her lips. He twisted his body, pulling her closer to him with his free hand, skirting his fingers under the barrier that kept him from her flesh.

She let out a soft mewing sound as his digits slipped through her warm, wet folds. Her hands fell limply as she relaxed, the left hitting his shoulder as her right landed in his lap.

He gasped softly, feeling the contact with his manhood, and he silently begged for more as he pushed one thick finger into her.

Realizing where her hand was, she turned her palm to the side and cupped him, teasing as he had, then squeezing lightly. Her body rocked against the slow motion of his hand, and she whimpered.

"God, Liv," he breathed against her lips, forcing another finger into her. He twisted his hand, pulled and pushed, then stroked his thumb over her clit. "Want you," he panted. "Need you."

She moaned and finally slipped her hand down into his boxers, her hand surrounding his length, and she stroked him, matching the rhythm of his fingers in her.

"Shit," he said in a harsh whisper, his lips falling away from hers and his eyes closing. He moved his thumb over her clit again, up and down, side to side, and then in circles. "You like that, baby?"

She arched her back and pressed her lips together, but the moan was loud anyway. "Elliot," she cried, "Yes."

"I love when you do that," he said, before a soft grunt escaped. His hips thrust into her curled hand, he squeezed a third finger into his lover, he kissed her neck. "When you say my name like that, like I'm the only man in the world who has ever made you feel like this."

She moaned again, her hand gripping him tighter and stroking faster. "You are," she said to him, her voice wispy as her chest heaved. "God you are."

"Am I?" he asked, the pad of his thumb moving faster. "The only one?"

She nodded vigorously as her body tightened. She felt his fingers moving within her, felt every electric wave course through her system with each touch of his thumb. "Yes, Elliot!" she cried. "God, yes!"

Seeing her in the throes of her orgasm, feeling her clenching and pulsing around his fingers, and hearing her cry his name in such a wonton way was all too much. He buried his face in her neck and grunted, firing off, shooting over her hand, among other places. He took a deep breath as he felt her hand stop moving, but stay firmly wrapped around him, and kissed her, working his fingers harder and faster, determined to coax another release from her.

She whimpered as her body gave into him, a second burst of intensity running through her from her head to her toes. "Elliot," she spat, "Fuck, baby!"

He chuckled, slowing his motion, stroking her easily until he stopped. He kissed her slowly, then backed away, moving his hand away from her and bringing it to his lips.

She watched him suck his fingers clean and it made her make a noise she wasn't sure humans could make.

He chuckled, then leaned over her, kissing her, falling into her.

Fin, awake in the next room, had heard the moans and grunts and cries. He rolled his eyes, controlling his temper, and pulled out his cell phone. He grumbled obscenities under his breath as he sent a rapid text to someone. Someone he knew would want to know.

It said simply, "They're here. It's time."

* * *

><p>Three in the morning, Olivia woke up to the sound of a knock on the door. She mumbled and rolled over, trying to get Elliot's attention, and her eyes popped open when she realized he wasn't there. "El? Elliot?"<p>

No answer.

She heard the knocking again, and, confused, she sat up and grabbed her pants. "Yeah?" she called, pulling on the slacks. She buttoned her top fast, unsure of who it was, and not taking chances.

"Hey, Liv," Fin said, walking in, staring at her. He looked around. "Where's Stabler?"

She hummed. "Probably the bathroom," she said. "What's up?"

Fin held out a hand. "I got a call from Cragen," he said, "He wants us to check around down here. Thinks that maybe the guy…"

"He thinks this fucker is hiding out in the narcotics division?" she questioned, ignoring his hand and standing without help. She grabbed her gun and her cell phone, and raised an eyebrow at him.

Fin licked his lips, seeing the curves and swells of her body so clearly through the wrinkled white top. "The whole building is being searched. Not just here."

Olivia tilted her head. "We should wait for El…"

"We can call him if we find anything," Fin said. "He's probably already lookin' somewhere himself."

She thought for a moment, biting her lip, and she nodded. "Lead the way," she said, gesturing to the door. "You've got the flashlight."

Fin smiled and walked toward the door. "Right," he said.

Olivia fired off a quick text to Elliot, hoping he had his phone on, and hoping her instincts were wrong. She put her phone back in her pocket and kept a hand on her gun as she followed Fin out into the dark narcotics squad room.

"Stay close," he called to her.

"Don't worry about that," she returned, following as Fin guided her through an empty, narrow hallway. "Fin, we can turn on the lights…"

"Bein' rewired," he said, interrupting. He opened every door they passed, turning corners with a raised gun. "So, uh, you and Stabler…how serious is it?"

She narrowed her eyes. "I…I don't…I don't know, Fin. It's too soon to even…"

"When did it start?" he asked, turning on her, fire in his eyes.

She backed up quickly. "What?"

"You heard me," he said, taking another step. "When?"

Olivia moved back again, until she hit the wall. "When I got back," she answered, trying to get a grip on the handle of her gun.

"That night?" he asked, angling his head toward her a bit. He took another step. "The night you came home?"

She swallowed and nodded. "Yeah," she whispered.

"What happened, Liv?" he asked, deliberately hissing on the nickname that wasn't his to use.

She glared at him. "I called him when I landed, he picked me up from the airport, we talked. I told him everything that..."

"Why didn't you call someone else?" Fin asked. He raised his hand and brushed it down her cheek. "I would have been there." he bit his lip and said, "Who made the first move?"

"Me," she sighed, running a hand down her face, afraid thet not being honest would end badly. She didn't know what Fin was capable of. "I, um...he told me Kathy left him, that he'd been alone since I'd been gone...I kissed him. He didn't...he didn't stop me."

Fin moved closer still, his hand now running through her hair. "No one would stop you."

She tried to get his hand away from her face. "Fin, what are you…"

Her words were cut off by his lips, which managed only a moment of contact before she pushed him back and raised her gun. "Back up!" she shouted. "It's you! Isn't it?"

Fin laughed. "You gonna shoot me?"

"If I have to," she answered.

"You wouldn't." He took a step, testing her. His eyes widened as she readied her gun and took aim. "You're serious."

"Yeah." She took a step forward. Her phone rang, stopping her, and she kept her eyes and her gun on Fin as one hand reached into her pocket to pull out her cell. "Benson," she answered, trying to hide the nerves in her voice. "El? What are you talking…what?"

She squinted as she listened to Elliot. Her heart pounded in her chest when he told her he just got a text message, a picture of her and fin kissing. She closed her eyes and tried to breathe when he told her he got her message first, that she was right, and he was on his way to find her. "Okay, but you have to…wait, El, that means that he's here. Now. I swear to you, I did not…"

Fin scoffed and ripped the phone out of her hands. "Stabler? Yeah, man, I kissed her. You enjoy that picture?" He chuckled as he stared at Olivia. "Nah, she didn't really. She got her gun on me now, matter of fact." He licked his lips and said, "It's hot." He narrowed his eyes and told Elliot, "You have twenty minutes to find her, or I'm gonna be her last kiss."

Olivia watched, shocked, as Fin threw her phone hard against the far wall. It shattered into pieces. She moved her arm fast, but Fin grabbed the barrel of her gun and twisted. "Fin, you don't have to…"

"Yes, I do," he said, showing fear in his eyes. "He told me I had to. Or he'd…hurt you."

Olivia's eyes narrowed. "So, you're not…"

"No," he whispered. "I would never hurt you. I thought I made that clear."

She blinked and asked, "Then who…Fin, you have to tell me…"

"Him," he said, nodding behind him.

Olivia heard the footsteps, and she saw the figure move out of the shadows and into the dim light from the window in the hallway. Her eyes widened, her body froze. "Oh, my God."

**A/N: Who is it?**


	9. Because Two Can Keep A Secret

**A/N: Time flies when you're on the run.**

**DISCLAIMER: Dick Wolf own SVU and the characters; TStabler© owns the story you're about to read.**

"Damn it," Elliot shouted, shutting his phone. He ran as fast as he could back up to his own squad room, bolted through the doors and yelled, "He's got her!"

Cragen looked up from his conversation with Munch. "What?"

"Liv's gone," he said, frantic. "I got back to the bunk and she wasn't there, she left this voicemail...I called her, and then Fin...she was with Fin...he said I have, shit, fifteen minutes to find her!"

Munch stood up. "Are you sure? I mean...Fin?"

"Yeah," Elliot said. "Fin. He laughed at me, he said I had twenty minutes to find her or he would be her last kiss. He's gonna..."

Munch shook his head. "No," he interrupted. "Fin would never hurt her.

"He threw her fucking phone against the wall, man! But Cap, the other one. That phone," Elliot breathed. "The one you gave her...I hit the pound key when we were stuck in the elevator. I never turned it off, it's still in her pocket."

Cragen didn't waste time, he ran to the nearest computer. "How did this happen?" he asked. "She was supposed to stay with you."

"I went to the bathroom," Elliot said, biting his lip. "I left her alone for five minutes, she was asleep! I can't fucking believe this shit, Cap, it's Fin."

Munch shook his head. "No," he said, reaching for his phone. "Fin sent me a text about an hour ago saying he was sorry, and he had no choice." He handed Elliot the phone.

Cragen hit a few keys on the keyboard, then waited. "Shit," he said. "They're downstairs. Boiler room." He pulled his gun out of its holster and said, "Let's go."

Munch's phone went off then, starling the three men. Heads turned. Elliot looked down, Munch's phone lighting up in his hand. He flipped it open and hit the button to read the message. "Stabler comes alone," he said, "Or Benson dies."

Cragen shook his head. "You can't..."

Elliot threw Munch his phone. "Wait," he said, grabbing his own gun. "Give me a five minute head start. He'll think I'm alone, then. He won't expect you to be there."

"Yeah, go," Cragen said.

Elliot nodded once, then turned, running through the halls. He punched the stairwell door open, taking the steps almost a full flight at a time, leaping over rails. His chest hurt and heaved as he pushed through the last door, heading toward the boiler room.

He looked around and slowed his steps, careful not to make any noise, keeping his gun aimed in front of him.

He heard scuffling, the sliding of metal, and a loud bang. Then he heard a muffled scream and gasped. He ran, then, following the noise. Turning the corners fast with a steady aim, he peeked into every door, finally finding Olivia. "Liv," he whispered, relieved.

She shook her head at him and mumbled, the gag in her mouth stifling her words.

He shushed her and knelt down beside her, untying her ankles. "I'm gonna get you outta here," he told her. He ran his hands up her legs to her waist, unlatching the thick belt that kept her tied down on the metal table.

She struggled as he moved his hands further up her body, taking the gag out of her mouth. "Damn it," she spat. "You couldn't have done that first?"

He undid the knots in the rope that had bound her hands above her head. "Are you okay?"

"Fine," she said, sitting up. "But you shouldn't have come down here."

He narrowed his eyes. "Liv, I wasn't gonna let him..."

"He's not gonna hurt me," she said, closing her eyes. "Trust me, that's the last thing he'd do."

"Fin said that...God, I'm gonna kill him," he griped, helping her up off the table. "

She grabbed his hand and pulled him out of the small room. "It's not Fin, El,"

"What?" he asked. "That's what Munch said, but he could have..."

"Going somewhere?" a voice said.

They turned and both gasped, Elliot took aim, ready to shoot. He was confused, seeing the woman a few feet in front of them, aiming her gun. He shook his head. "No, but you...you're..."

"Alive," she said, nodding. "Yeah. Funny thing about Agent Porter is he would never kill his partner."

"Partner?" Elliot asked, confused.

Olivia leaned into him. "She's in on it," she said. "She was the fourth. He didn't count Cragen because Cragen's been playing his little games, too."

Elliot turned back to face the woman. "Why, Dana?"

Dana chuckled, stepping forward, her gun trained. "She was in such a rush to come back here," she said. "Back to you, back to the mundane life of a simple detective. He offered her everything, a life. A real life. We offered her everything!"

"Who?" Elliot asked, angry now, his own gun still pointed at Dana. "What does that mean, we?"

Olivia closed her eyes. "Dean," she said. "He...Elliot, he wants me to..."

"He wants her to either admit the real reason she came back," Dana interrupted, "Take the chance and live with you, out in the open, or accept she can't do that and go back to him. To us."

Elliot looked at Olivia. "Back to him? You told me you didn't..."

"I didn't," Olivia interjected. "He flirted, he pushed, but, El, I never..."

A door behind them slammed. They all jumped and turned, and a gunshot rang out. Olivia let out a high pitched squeal, and turned, watching Dana fall to the floor, clutching her arm.

"She'll be fine," the shooter said. "But you, the two…"

Elliot narrowed his eyes and turned. "Are you out of your mind?"

The man chuckled, walking toward them with his gun still drawn. "That one keeps saying I am," he said, pointing the gun at Olivia. "But I am certainly not."

"Drop the gun," Elliot said, shielding Olivia, finding it oddly comforting that, this time, they were fully clothed.

The man laughed and shook his head. "No, I think you're going to drop yours."

"Not gonna happen," Elliot said, sneering. "What do you want? Huh? Was all of this shit just fun for you, or…?"

"Dean," Olivia said, trying to get out from behind Elliot, "Please, just let him go. He has nothing to do with this!"

"He has everything to do with it, Olivia!" Dean yelled. "He's why you left me, why you came back here."

Olivia shut her eyes when she heard the click of Dean's gun. "I didn't leave you, Dean. I was never with you in the first place."

"Yeah." Dean took another step forward. "That's his fault, too."

"What do you care if she left or not?" Elliot said. "You knew the case would close, you knew she'd…"

Dean interrupted him. "I knew, but that didn't stop me from trying to get her to stay." He chuckled. "I followed her back here, hoping that she'd see how much effort I was putting into this. But then I saw her head right for your place, I saw that she…you…" he stopped talking and pressed his lips together as he fired a shot off into the wall behind them.

Elliot fired, then, too, but Dean moved. Elliot grabbed Olivia and pulled her out of the way in time to dodge a shot, and he pushed her through the door. "Run," he yelled to her.

"I'm not leaving you here, El!" Olivia said, moving as Dean fired off another bad round. "You're just as crazy as he is!"

"Liv, they took your gun, you can't help here! Go!" Elliot shouted. He gave her a shove then turned around to aim at Dean, who had already taken off running in the other direction. "Shit," Elliot spat, running after him.

Terrified, but unarmed, she knew he was right and she bolted. She didn't make it far when she met Munch and Cragen in the open cellar space. "Oh, thank God!"

"Where?" Munch asked.

Olivia pointed, but they followed the sound of distant gunshots instead of her direction. She ran a hand through her hair as she backed up into the wall and tried to calm down. She kept her eyes on the doorway, she cringed with each shot, and she wondered how this had all happened.

"You okay?" Fin asked, stepping out of the dark corner of the hallway, facing her.

Her eyes widened. She nodded.

Fin reached into his pocket, a move that made Olivia slink along the wall, preparing to run again. He stilled, then shook his head sadly as he pulled out her gun. He handed it to her. "Take it," he said.

She narrowed both of her eyes as she wrapped her hand around the grip of it. "Why are you…"

"Liv," Fin sighed, "He's got more on you than he does on me. He wants to ruin your life or force you to give it up, he's just got some small shit on me. It could cost me my job, but…you go get him."

She smiled at him and checked to see if her gun was loaded.

"I told you," he said gently, "I would never hurt you. I…"

"Don't say it," she said sharply. "I have a hard enough time hearing it from Elliot."

Fin chuckled. "He does, ya know. A lot."

"I know," she said, nodding once at him. "Thanks, Fin," she said, taking two slow steps backward before running off to find Elliot, hoping she wouldn't run into Dean first.

Fin watched her go as he pulled his own gun out of his pocket. "Anytime," he said with a chuckle. He waited another moment before running after her.

**A/N: FIN? BAD? IS HE OR ISNT HE? (PS – if you haven't heard, 15% of sales of my novels will be donated to The Joyful Heart Foundation, founded and run by SVU's own Mariska Hargitay. If you'd like to purchase a book, see , or PM me)**


	10. If One Of Them Is Dead

**A/N: Your lies reveal the truth.**

**DISCLAIMER: Dick Wolf own SVU and the characters; TStabler© owns the story you're about to read.**

A single gunshot stopped Olivia in her tracks. "No," she gasped, fearing the worst. She ran hard, then, following the echo of the bang. She turned the corner, and stopped in the doorway, looking in at the still, standing people.

Cragen turned to her, shaking his head. "There was nothing we could do," he whispered.

Munch, his gun aimed, shook slightly as he said, "We couldn't…we couldn't stop him."

A tear rolled down her cheek and she ran into the room, focusing on just him, only him. She leaped onto him, holding on for dear life, and regardless of who was watching, she kissed him.

He dropped his gun and wrapped her up in his arms, his fingers gripping the flesh of her back as he held her around his waist. He kissed her back with everything he had, and even some things he wasn't sure were his to give, and let tears fall down his cheeks.

Munch lowered his gun. "Um, Cap?"

"Yeah," Cragen said, looking away from the emotional couple. "Yeah, John. I know."

"But…since when…is that why…" Munch was interrupted by Fin, walking into the room and lowering his own gun.

Fin met Cragen's eyes, then Munch's, then looked at Olivia and Elliot. "You just gonna let them…"

"They've been through a lot today, Fin," Cragen said, nodding. "We all have," he whispered.

Olivia peeled her lips away from Elliot's, dropped her forehead to his, and said, "You can say that again."

"Guess they all know, now," he said to her, kissing the end of her nose.

Olivia nodded. "I don't care," she said, catching her breath before kissing him again.

Fin rolled his eyes as he holstered his gun. "Come on, man," he griped. "There's a dead guy in the room!"

Elliot chuckled as he slowly lowered Olivia to the ground and looked at her, as if he was seeing her for the first time. He ran his hands down her head, through her hair, and swept one palm slowly over her face. "I almost lost you."

"I thought he…" she paused to swallow. "When I heard the gunshot, I thought…" she couldn't say it. She couldn't form the words. She shook her head and reached for his hand as her head turned to look down at Dean, broken and bleeding on the concrete ground.

"I didn't shoot him," Elliot whispered to her. "I wanted to, but I…I never pulled the trigger."

Cragen, hearing that, furrowed his brow. "Wait, Elliot," he said, walking toward them. "If you didn't shoot him, then…"

"I did," Fin said, folding his arms. He bit his lip and rocked on his heels. "I told you," he mumbled. "I'd never let anyone hurt you." He pointed to Elliot, then. "If he ever does, I swear to God, I'll…"

"Fin," Olivia interrupted, something new in her eyes as she looked at him. "Thank you, but you know he'd never…"

"Never say never," Fin said, cutting her off. He looked at Cragen. "Dean killed Dani. Told me before he made me drag Liv down here. He had one of Tucker's old badges because…"

"Tucker gave it to me," Olivia said, her eyes widening. "Before I left for Oregon, to remind me that he was…watching me."

Elliot squeezed her hand. "You gave it to Dean?"

She shook her head. "No, he…he must have taken it out of…when I got to the house out there, I threw it out." She looked back at Dean. "He planned this. All of it."

"Not alone," Munch said. "Someone had to have been helping him."

Elliot's eyebrows shot up. "Dana! She's…"  
>"Shit," Olivia hissed, turning on her heels and running out the way she'd come with Elliot by her side.<p>

Cragen, Munch, and Fin all shrugged at once and two of the men followed after Olivia and Elliot, unsure of what they'd be running into. Cragen, however, knelt down beside the body of Dean Porter. He took the cell phone out of his pocket and flipped it open, then fished through the sent messages. He scoffed and said, "You son of a bitch," as he got to his feet and used his own cell phone to call for Doctor Warner.

* * *

><p>"I am unbelievably glad this whole thing is over," Elliot said, running a hand down his face.<p>

Olivia, wrapped in his arms, nodded and yawned. "Me, too."

"Tucker was relieved to be off the suspect list, finally," he said, kissing her forehead. "Not too relieved to be faced with us, though. I mean…together. After we had to tell him…"

"I saw his face, El, and I heard him," she interrupted, nuzzling deeper into his chest. "He's pissed. He…he has a right to be. This…honestly, this shouldn't have happened."

He cupped her chin with one hand and lifted her head, meeting her eyes. "Don't say that," he whispered harshly. "Liv, you can't…"

"I don't regret this," she said, narrowing her eyes. "That's not what I meant. I just meant, policy and regulations…standards and bylaws…this really shouldn't be happening."

He sighed and nodded. "That's why we're here," he said, shifting in his chair and moving his arm further around her shoulders. He ran his other hand down her side and rested it on her knee. "Whatever he decides…"

"Stabler," Tucker's voice interrupted. "You first."

Elliot looked at him with disdain, then nodded at him. He gave Olivia a kiss, stood, and walked into the office, letting Tucker close the door behind him.

Olivia bit her lip, knowing he would take the blame for everything, that he would take the fall, make the sacrifice. Exactly what Tucker wanted him to do, he would do.

She sighed and dropped her head against the plaster wall, her thoughts drifted back to the night she came home, the night her world changed for the umpteenth time. She remembered how the taxi drove right passed her apartment, through heavy traffic, out of Manhattan and into Queens. She recalled how she felt completely numb as she got out of the cab and ran to his doorstep, knocked as hard as she could, and didn't even wait for him to say hello before throwing her arms around him and kissing him.

She smiled to herself as she remembered how shocked he was, but how hard he kissed her back, and how he pulled her into his house and slammed the door, leaving the cabbie waiting in his driveway with a running meter and Olivia's luggage.

She moaned slightly when she vividly recollected the way his hands peeled off her clothes, and the way hers fumbled nervously at his buttons. The way his fingertips grazed her bare skin, glided through her longer hair, slipped into places she'd only ever dreamed he would touch.

The memory became a vision, his touch and his voice feeling real and solid.

"Liv," she heard, opening one eye. He was kneeling before her, grinning. "You okay?"

She nodded and sat up, straightening out. "Guess he wants to see me, now, huh?"

He kissed her and said, "Yeah." He looked into her eyes. "Don't do anything stupid, baby, okay?"

She narrowed her eyes.

"You need this job," he told her, brushing her hair behind her ear. "I can work homicide if I have to, if it comes down to that, but you…you've got your heart and soul invested into this unit. In case you were thinking of going in there and playing the heroine, don't."

She rolled her eyes. "Yes, Sir," she teased. "What did you tell him?"

"Just answered his questions," he said with a shrug.

She raised an eyebrow. "Elliot?"

He chuckled. "I may or may not have told him that if he ever threatened you again, I'd break both his legs."

"Elliot!" she gasped, slapping him.

"Not in those exact words," he laughed, rubbing his arm. "Go. I wanna go home," he kissed her again and slapped her ass as she walked into the office. He got up and sat in her vacated seat, and he smiled as he remembered the night she walked back into his life and turned his world upside down.

He bit his lip, remembering the first kiss, the first time he touched her, the first time he felt what it was like to be inside of her, and he suppressed a groan when he remembered what it felt like to make her come for the first time.

He folded his hands and tried to stop the shaking of his knees, feeling his pants tighten as the memory became too clear for his liking. He cleared his throat and stared at Tucker's closed door, waiting for her to come back out, waiting for his life to change yet again.

"Elliot?" a voice called, annoyed and exhausted.

Elliot looked up, seeing Fin, and he watched his former friend sit. "Hey," he said, narrowing his eyes.

"I, uh, I know I've been a pain in the ass, and I'm sorry," Fin said, pulling something out of his pocket. "This was in Dean's bag," he said. "I grabbed it when…when he was tying Liv to that table. I was tryin' to find his phone but...well, I thought…I thought you might want it." He handed the folded document to Elliot.

Elliot looked at it, curious, and unfolded it. He scanned it quickly, then looked at Fin. "Did you read this?"

"No," Fin answered. "I wanted to, but…I didn't make it past the first line before I felt like I was invading some kind of…I dunno…sacred circle."

Elliot nodded. "You would have been," he said. "Thank you. I'm guessing…this means Liv never got it? She never read it."

"He still had it, so I don't think he ever gave it to her," Fin said. "He read it, so he knew. I guess your secret dies with him, unless you tell Liv yourself."

Elliot furrowed his brow. "I thought you said you didn't read…"

"I'm a detective," Fin interrupted. "I can guess what the letter said, and it obviously doesn't matter 'cause she's with ya now, ain't she?"

Elliot nodded, smiling. "She is."

Tucker's door opened, Olivia walked out with the sergeant right behind her. She gave Elliot an annoyed look and folded her arms. Tucker stepped up behind her with a smarmy smile on his face.

"Stabler," Tucker said, "I've been waiting years to tell you to go downstairs and pack up your desk."

Elliot pressed his lips together. "Okay," he said, standing.

Tucker stopped him. "But it looks like I'm gonna have to wait a little longer."

Confused, Elliot looked at him. "Sorry, what?"

"What the two of you did…what you went through…and you still only had your minds on the case," Tucker said, shaking his head in disbelief, "That's dedication. Not just to the job, but to each other. In this game, you have to trust your partner, and nothing tells me you trust each other more than knowing you've given all of yourselves to…"

"Yeah," Elliot nodded, interjecting. "So, I'm still in the unit, with Liv, that what you're saying?"

Tucker nodded, licking his lips. "Don't get too comfortable, though. One wrong move, Stabler, and you're in Homicide with O'Harrah and his hairy wart."

Elliot laughed, holding out his hand, being the bigger person. "Thank you, Tucker."

Tucker sighed and shook his hand. "You cleared my name, Stabler. You and Benson. I owe you this." He looked at Fin, then, and said, "You, in my office, now. Your gun is still with Ballistics, so…"

"Yeah," Fin grumbled, standing. He huffed as he walked into the office.

Tucker rolled his eyes, gave one last warning glance at Elliot and Olivia, and moved, slamming his door.

Olivia smirked and looked at Elliot, her arms folded. "He asked some pretty personal questions."

Elliot nodded. "And none of it mattered. He just…" he waved an arm. "He was…fucking Tucker."

"What's that?" she asked, pointing to the letter in his hand.

He smiled, folded it, and put it in his pocket. "Nothing you don't already know," he said. He kissed her, took her hand, and walked with her down the hall.

Her phone rang as they moved, she answered it with a grunt of her last name. "Yeah," she said, looking over at Elliot. "We're on the way."

He watched her hang up the phone and raised an eyebrow. "We got a rape?" he guessed.

"And murder," she said, sighing.

And they walked, a new stiffness in their synchronized steps, toward the elevator and headed to a new line of crime scene tape, a new puzzle to be solved, and a new hurdle to leap.

Until someone told them not to, they would walk under that tape, solve that puzzle, and leap over that hurdle together.

**A/N: The End!**


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